Finding Solace
by Aiiro Hart
Summary: Even though my life is supposed to be perfect, I happen to have a problem so big; it's what they call "all in one". This dilemma came out of nowhere one fairly normal Monday morning, and, before I knew it, changed my world completely. This problem's name is Sakura Haruno.
1. Prologue

It's very hard to convince a teenager that he or she will be faced by problems far worse than those of the adolescent years; that there's more to life than just the latest trends, parties and everybody thinking you're the most awesome person to ever walk the earth. This is High School; most of us haven't lived long enough to go through worse problems than "teen drama".

Here, somehow, everyone knows everything about everybody. Whether it's something good that will make you popular, or bad enough to completely destroy your image is irrelevant, it all depends on how you play the hand you're dealt. You can't hide it, but you can either deny it 'til you die or boast about it like a proud champion. But you can never hide this one fact:

There's always a story.

There's always gossip someone is dying to tell; there's always a secret someone wants to burry, a lie someone wants to keep, an obsession someone wants to satiate, a goal someone wants to realize, a suffering someone wants to end. Above all, there is always someone who will be the victim of all this chaos. There's always this unfortunate kid everyone empties their frustrations on, and anyone who tries to something about it usually gets caught in the social crossfire.

Fortunately, I'm one of those who walk with pride, so gossip doesn't really affect me or ruin my reputation. They rather see me as someone who doesn't have any problems, spreads gossip, and have no horrible story they can pin on me. Maybe that's why they regard me as "untouchable". Oh but how wrong they are.

Even though my life is supposed to be perfect, I happen to have a problem so big; it's what they call "all in one". This dilemma came out of nowhere one fairly normal Monday morning, and,i before I knew it, changed my world completely. This problem's name is Sakura Haruno.


	2. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1**

**Of Old Friends and New Neighbors **

"Hurry up! I want to get this done before breakfast!" a voice, with a slight Irish accent broke the usual morning silence. The loud voice slightly echoed through the empty street. Six muscular and well-built men jumped from the back of a large white, rusty truck while the Irish man parked the truck in front of its destination. Shouting more orders for his workers to follow, he failed to notice the couple standing in front of the house. A tall blond man and a fair skinned red haired woman, both wearing grey tailored suits, stood quietly and watched as the movers kept moving in and out of the truck looking for furniture. Noticing the man was unaware of them, the blond man cleared his throat.

"Good morning Mr. Balfe" he said.

"Oh! Sorry sir didn't see you there! Morning! Good morning to you as well ma'am, looking lovely as usual! Hehe" he sheepishly greeted, slightly embarrassed.

The man known as Alfred Balfe is a man to be feared. Even though his tall and muscular complexion is contrasted with his kind looking face, he gained the reputation of a short-tempered guy throughout the years he's been in business. Yes, the man is kind and very fun to be around, but he takes his work seriously, maybe a little too much; and when someone tries to "sabotage" him, as he believes, his temper quickly gets the best of him. But he gets the work done; always, quick and professionally. This was the reason this couple hired him and his men to help them settle into their new home.

"Why thank you! But please, enough with the formalities Alfred, we've been friends for years!" answered the woman, her smile sweet and fond of the Irish man in front of her. "Please do visit us when you have the time! We have so much catching up to do!"

"Will do! But for now I gotta get going! I've got quite the busy day! Alfred shouted as he climbed back in his truck and ordered the men back. The married couple stood in front of their house and waved as the truck moved out of their driveway and drove down the street. The man took a deep breath and smiled.

"What's the matter dear?"

"I think we're going to like it here. It's nice" he said as he looked around, admiring the peaceful neighborhood.

"Yes, I think we'll be happy here too, Minato". The red haired woman smiled at her husband. A smile he knew to be mixed with an incurable sadness.

* * *

_There aren't really that many things I am passionate about. I am very selective that way. But one of those things I do is silence. So as to not call it love, I am very passionate about waking up to complete silence. I don't need alarm clocks or anybody to wake me up, I do that on my own, and always on time. Always on time to go through my morning routine; shower, breakfast, morning newspaper, exercise, then school. All of these in complete and utter silence. I cherish every bit of it, knowing it will be what I have least once I leave my quiet house and equally quiet neighborhood. Now, for someone who enjoys silence as much as I do, imagine my distress and absolute rage at being woken up by the lack of silence, two hours before my usual wake up time_.

"**Hurry up! I want to get this done before breakfast!"**

His body quickly jerked and jumped out of bed at the sound of men screaming orders at each other. The startling sound of what seemed to be of a truck revving confused him. He glanced at the clock on his bedside table and it read 5:00a.m. in bright neon green numbers.

"What the?" he mumbled, sleepiness and confusion clear in his dark eyes. Who in the world is making so much noise at five in the morning, and in his quiet neighborhood, no less?! He quickly got out of bed and crossed the room to his window, which had a view to the street and row of houses in front, and saw the source of all the commotion. Movers. Sailor-looking, tough men were shouting instructions at each other, probably trying to be louder than their truck, to move the furniture inside the two story white house across the street. He could barely make up their silhouettes beside the truck due to the remaining darkness of the night. He could see two figures talking with who seemed to be the moving company boss, or at least the owner of the truck.

"Out of all good timing, why in the world would they move at such an ungodly hour? How rude." Have they no consideration for all those who need their rest? It's five in the morning, on a Monday, and most people around don't wake up this early.

Thankfully, the movers finished unloading everything from the truck and left quickly. The young man decided to go on with his morning routine. "I guess I'll just be a little earlier to school today."

Like he has done every day for the past three years, he showered, read, jogged and ate in silence. He planned what he would accomplish during the day, and headed for the front door of his home. Just as he opened the door he was greeted with a comical sight of a red haired woman with her hand in mid-air, about to knock on his door.

"Oh! Good morning!" she said, a slight blush adorning her cheeks.

"Good morning" He replied dryly while directing a confused look at her still raised hand.

Noticing this, she quickly retracted it.

"Hello! My name is Kushina. My husband Minato and I just moved to the house across the street from you." She said with a friendly smile.

_So she's responsible for all that noise_. The young man stepped outside and locked the door silently.

"Are your parents home? I would like to meet them and say hello"

"No."

"They left for work already? What do they do? When will they be back?" Kushina tilted her head to the side while asking, her sweet smile never faltering.

"They won't be back"

"What do you mean they won't be…oh. Oh dear I'm so sorry" she said, her happy expression suddenly changing to one of sympathy.

"What?" he asked. _This lady's really getting on my nerves with all this questioning. _Watching her sadden even more he understood what she was thinking.

"They're not dead, lady. They live in Spain."

"Oh is that so?! Hahaha What a relief! And here I thought I might've hurt you! Haha sorry! Well then how.." Kushina was cut short when she noticed the boy started to glare and tap his foot impatiently.

"I'm so sorry! I've been keeping you here for a while and you're probably on your way to school right? I'm sorry I just love to meet new people and everything. Well since you live alone and all, feel free to come to my house for dinner from time to time! We'd love to have you over, and that way you can meet my husband! Would that be nice? How about this Friday? Maybe we could-"

"Yes, yes okay Miss Kushina, I would love to come over for dinner on Friday. But can we please discuss this some other time? I'm late for school." _Total lie, but hey, can't blame a guy for wanting alone time in the mornings. _

"Oh right! Sorry again!" she laughed nervously and looked as he walked away from his home. J

"Wait! I didn't get your name!" she shouted after him. He stopped walking and turned to her, and gave his name with a smirk; a name so painfully familiar that she was left speechless as she could only watch his back walking away.

"My name is Sasuke. Sasuke Uchiha."


	3. Chapter 2

**WELL HERE'S CHAPTER TWO. A LITTLE SHORT, BUT I HOPE YOU LIKE IT. PLEASE REVIEW AND LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! :)**

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**CHAPTER 2 **

**Of a Little Accident and a Little Luck**

"_The city is awake"_

The sounds of traffic and countless people in the street greeted her when she woke. She quickly looked at her clock, which read 6:30 a.m. "_Never a minute late"_. There was always something going on in the city, but she always found the urban noise louder in the mornings. At 6:30 every morning the citizens of Konoha would begin their morning routines.

People would leave their homes to go to work, the traffic would jam with countless cars, cabs and buses, and fast food vendors would start setting up in corners they have worked in for years. Today the sounds of the city were louder than ever, and when she glanced at her window, she noticed it was raining. Before she could even feel her usual dislike for rain, a knock on her door caught her attention. The door slowly creaked opened to reveal a middle aged woman, short and tanned skinned. Her brown eyes looked black in the shadows, along with the faint blackness under her eyes from lack of sleep. The woman smiled gently at her.

"Good morning sweetheart, time to get up or you'll be late for school. The bus might be a little late though; the rain caused a huge jam in the main road." The woman said. She walked away after telling her to hurry to the kitchen for a warm breakfast.

"Thanks mom, I'll be out soon" the girl retorted while getting out of bed. She went to the bathroom and while brushing her teeth, looked at her reflection. She really looked a lot like her mother. They shared the same tanned skin, the brown eyes, brown hair, and even their noses were a similar shape. She always thought that if her mother rested appropriately, they would look like sisters. Her mother was not that old after all, she was barely 30; but she figured being a young single mother working three jobs in the middle of the city could make anyone look older. That is why today, she was determined to come back with the news of having a job. She was hardworking, and very responsible, so she was confident that she would succeed in her daily mission.

"Ten-Ten! Hurry up, it's getting cold!"

Of course, before her mission, she'd have a few things to do. With that in mind, Ten-Ten smiled at her reflection, and with a determined nod, walked out the bathroom door.

"_Today will be the day"_

* * *

Quickly dressing in simple jeans, black t-shirt and sneakers after breakfast, Ten-Ten was out of her apartment building and on her way to the coffee shop around the corner of the block. She planned on leaving a resume there on her way to school since the day she saw the HELP WANTED paper stuck on a window. Ten-Ten loved coffee, and she also loved to work. What could be better than work at a coffee shop?

She was greeted with a warm and air filled with the delicious scent of freshly brewed coffee and baked goods when she entered the shop. As usual, there was a long line that ended almost at the door, and two workers scurrying from side to side in the counter, trying to work with taking orders, serving, baking and attending the cash register as fast as they could. Ten-Ten worried she could not get their attention without making the line, and if she did, she would miss her buss to school. She tried countless times to hand her resume when the workers would go to the cash register, but they would always be preoccupied with customers. Deciding to come back later, she turned to leave.

"AAH!" someone shouted as Ten-Ten felt something cold dampening her shirt. Confused, she looked up to see a girl on the floor looking at her in complete horror.

"Oh my God! I am so so so so sorry! Are you okay? Oh thank goodness its Iced coffee, you would've gotten burned!" the girl said while Ten-Ten could only stare in a mix of confusion and fascination. The girl before her was definitely out of this world. _"Who in the world has pink hair?! And wow, are those contact lenses?"_

"Are you okay? Please say something!" the girl insisted. When Ten-Ten saw her start to tear up, she snapped back to reality and said the first thing that came to mind.

"Are you an alien?" she regretted it as soon as the words came out from her mouth. The girl stilled, and the once bustling coffee shop turned silent. She noticed that everyone, even the workers, was staring at the unfolding scene. The girl turned so red, Ten-Ten didn't know if out of embarrassment or pure rage at her words.

"Um..listen I-" she awkwardly started, before she was interrupted by the sound of laughter. The pink haired girl was laughing, so much so that tears were brimming her eyes. Confused and shocked, Ten-Ten only stared and waited for the girl to stop. Clutching her now aching stomach, the pink haired girl straightened and addressed Ten-Ten again.

"Haha sorry about that. I never heard that one before! I like you, let's be friends. I'm Sakura, and you?" she said as she extended her hand.

"Erm…Ten-Ten." She replied as they shook hands. Sakura gave her a smile before letting go of her hand.

"Nice to meet you Ten-Ten. Again, I'm sorry for the coffee, how could I make it up to you?"

"Well, unless you can somehow make these workers take my resume I don't think there's much you can do." Sakura blinked twice and shrugged.

"Oh that's all it takes? Fine then! You're hired!"

"Huh?" Ten-Ten was confused. It seemed to be happening a lot lately. _"How can she even say that so confidently?" _

"Well, I can do better than just hand your resume, you know? I'm the manager of this place, and so, you're hired!" Sakura explained with a proud grin on her face.

"Wait don't I get an interview or something? How do you know I'll be any good?" she asked.

Sakura smiled again and added "Well, it seems you haven't noticed, but we go to the same school, and we actually take Art class together, so I know all I need to! But if you want an interview so bad, you can always come after school and we'll get it over with. Now! Let's get you out of those wet clothes. You can borrow some of mine and pick yours up when you come for the interview. I promise they'll be clean by then." And before Ten-Ten could protest, Sakura gently pushed her down the hall and up a flight of stairs to her home, in the second floor of the coffee shop.


	4. Chapter 3

**Well, I'm still learning my way around the website, but I managed to upload this new chapter. I hope you enjoy it and please review! I really want to know if I'm doing okay and you like it;I still have my doubts. XoX **

**Also, there's something I want to explain, just in case. This story is not a series of one shots. Is a complete story, but I'm taking these first chapters to introduce the main characters in a way that you know a little about them. Of course, you'll learn more as the story progresses, but its like an intro to them, I guess? Hehe well, anyways, on with the story! I hope you like it :) **

* * *

**CHAPTER 3**

**Down the Road**

"Oi! Sit down or you're gonna crack your head open!" Alfred shouted with an evident tone of annoyance. Between the laughter of his chattering men, the squeaking of the old truck, the sound of boxes hitting each other, and the loud mouthed kid in the back were causing him a headache he feared not even his trusty Bailey's jug would not cure.

"Well hurry up then! My grandma moves faster than this! And she isn't even alive!" a young voice retorted from the back of Alfred's old moving truck. Shuffling was heard, along with a couple of boxes falling and a string of curses before the head of a young blond appeared from the door frame to the back of the truck.

"Well, what you in a hurry for? It ain't even seven! And quit talking like a bloody sailor." the Irish man complained while glancing at the boy through the rear-view mirror. "And sit down already! You're going to break something, and if you do I swear its coming out of your check!" and with that, the blond sat down in the passenger seat beside Alfred. His sapphire eyes glanced at the green eyed driver, unconsciously pouting and mumbling on how he was being bossy.

"What'cha say, kid?" Alfred said as he glanced at the boy. He raised his hands up in mock surrender and said it was nothing, but quickly explained himself when he saw the questioning look in Alfred's face. Since Alfred was a very scary looking guy from afar, due to his size, anyone would have confused his look for one of threat, but he knew better.

"Well sorry! I'm just kind of excited about school today! I've got a feeling it's going to be good!"

"Since when do you get excited about school?"

"I just told you! I just got a feeling today's going to be good. It'll pass when today's over! Besides, it's the first day, isn't it supposed to be normal?"

"Yeah but you ain't normal" with a fake undignified huff, the blond turned his head towards the window, with a mischievous smirk on his face that Alfred could not see. He knew that's all he had to do for Alfred to feel sorry and guilty about something, since he was such a softie underneath all that muscle, and besides, he just loved messing with him.

"Well it better pass though, I don't want you moving so damn much so early in the morning anyways." Alfred mumbled grumpily, glancing at him guiltily. The red haired man wasn't usually in such a sour mood, and the blond boy couldn't help the feeling something was bothering him, so he wanted to cheer him up and distract him before he was dropped at school. _"He wasn't like this when he left the house, and when he came to pick me up from school he looked as if someone had died. How strange."_ He made a mental note to ask him about it at dinner. He knew Alfred's co-workers wouldn't tell him anything, because they, in fact, wouldn't notice anything.

The rest of the way was silent, both of them absorbed in their thoughts. Alfred usually drove fast, hence why he always told him to sit down, but today he was going faster than usual. In less than a mile, he was stopped twice by police officers for exceeding the zone speed limit, to which he always had some kind of way to get away with it, yet today he didn't even argue about it; he simply nodded and took the tickets and kept on driving just as recklessly. Eventually they found themselves in slow traffic, and it turned out there was a small car crash on the middle of the road. There were ambulances and trucks blocking the street, plus the affected car and pick-up truck, making them have to take another route to the school. From what they could see, the cars weren't that heavily damaged but it appeared the occupants of both cars got hurt.

"Heh you see? That could have been you Al. Take it slow" the boy said as he watched the scene unfold from his window.

"Nah, the sooner I leave you there the better. You said so yourself, you're excited and it's making me crazy."

"Wow, I feel sorry for whoever just lost that beauty. They better have insurance" one of Alfred's workers said as he peeked from the doorway. The silence returned after Alfred turned in the corner of the street, except from the squeaking of the truck and the occasional chatter from the workers. The boy was lost in thought, wondering if the people from the accident were going to be okay and wondering if today was really going to be as good as he thought. He was taken out of his thoughts when a single drop of water hit the glass window. His blue orbs looked up and saw the darkening sky, and he could hear the faint rumble of thunder.

"It's raining" the boy whispered, slightly disheartened. The rain was pretty to look at, yet it also made him very sad, for reasons he could not understand. He loved the rain when he was busy, away from windows and anything that reminded him it was raining. He loved it because the day would be a little colder, and yet that was the same reason why he disliked it. He always felt like he wanted to cry when it rained.

Sighing, the boy looked out the window again and recognized another figure walking down the street. It was a raven haired boy, about his age, who he recognized as a fellow classmate in his P.E and History classes last semester. If he remembered correctly, his name was Sasuke, and he was good at everything, or so girls kept saying.

Before he could tell Alfred to give his classmate a ride, the truck had passed him and rounded the corner of the street, revealing Konoha High School straight ahead at the end of the one way street. _"Oh well, at least he's close by already"_ he though. The truck stopped in front of the school gates and Alfred handed the boy a small umbrella.

"Have fun kid! I'll see you at dinner" Alfred said with a smile. He was finally getting back to being his usual self. He placed a hand in the boy's blond hair and ruffled it affectionately, making the boy chuckle and gently smack his hand away.

"Yeah, see ya' later Al!" and with that, he hopped off the truck and started walking through the gates. With a chuckle, Alfred started the truck again and before he took off, he caught a glimpse of an orange backpack sitting where the boy just was.

He called out to the boy and handed him the bag.

"Don't be so careless, one of these days you'll lose something important"

"Haha right, right sorry! Bye Al!" and he walked away once more.

"See ya' Naruto" and with that, Alfred drove off.

* * *

**Now that Naruto has been introduced, the time for everything to really begin is nearing ^0^ well I hope you liked it! please review! **

**-Aiiro Hart **


	5. Chapter 4

**Well! Here's chapter 4! It's a bit longer than the previous ones because I didn't want to divide the events in two chapters. Please review and I hope you like it! **

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**CHAPTER 4**

**When Our Paths First Crossed**

When Sakura lightly pushed her up a narrow flight of stairs and stopped in front of a white, old looking wooden door, Ten-Ten didn't know what to expect. Sakura gave her a knowing smile and opened the door. Ten-Ten walked into a medium sized living room with yellow walls and white furniture. Sakura quickly walked across the room towards a pink door and Ten-Ten quickly followed. When they walked into Sakura' room, Ten-Ten thought that either Sakura was either a very simple person or just didn't spend that much time in her room. Maybe even both.

Sakura's room was medium sized, with a single glass window to the right side of the room, giving them a view of the street and buildings across the street. Her twin sized bed was covered with a simple white quilt; her walls were bare of posters, pictures and even paint. Her mahogany desk only had a tray with paper and writing utensils, and a laptop sitting at the center of the desk. Ten-Ten looked to where Sakura was standing, in front of an equally bare door to her left. She followed as Sakura opened the door to what turned out to be her walk-in closet. Ten-Ten whistled, quite impressed.

"Wow Sakura, no wonder your room's like that, you're more into wardrobe" she commented. Sakura looked at her, confused.

"What's wrong with my room?" she asked, turning to look at her. Ten-Ten's eyes widened, thinking she offended her.

"Nothing! You know, just that it isn't' painted or anything, and you barely have any things"

"Oh! Haha it's just that I don't like to that many things. And as for the walls, I kind of like the color of wood. Though you're right, I should paint it soon, though I'm not sure what color to choose from." She gave Ten-Ten a smile and told her to pick anything she liked.

Ten-Ten stepped into the closet and looked around. Both walls had racks for clothes and shoes, all neatly organized by shirts, jackets, pants, skirts and dresses and then all by color. At the end of the closet was a vertical rack that held bags, purses and jewelry boxes and even costumes. She also noticed that her wardrobe had a wide variety of shoes, especially sneakers.

"Seems like you and I have something in common other than coffee" she told her

"Oh? And what's that?"

"The love for jackets and sneakers" Ten-Ten said, turning to give her a little knowing smile. Sakura laughed and agreed, admitting that she prefers comfort above anything. After browsing the closet for a few minutes, Ten-Ten decided to borrow a black and white hoodie-shirt, plain jeans and black Converse sneakers. She walked to the door beside the closet, which Sakura informed was the bathroom, and quickly changed her clothes. On their way out of her room, Sakura took her clothes and left them washing.

"Don't worry, I'll send up one of the workers to put them in the drier. Now, since it's a lovely day and you're already here, let's walk to school together!" Sakura took her hand and dragged her down the flight of stairs in such a hurry that Ten-Ten almost tripped a couple of times. When they got to the end of the stairs Ten-Ten almost crashed into Sakura's back at her abrupt stop.

"Geez Sakura! Careful where you're stopping I could've tripped"

"Hehe sorry Tennie! I just noticed it's raining! I'll get an umbrella!" Before Ten-Ten could say anything about the sudden nickname, she was gone. _"Tennie?! She didn't even ask me if she could call me that" _with a chuckle, she took a seat on a near booth to wait for hear.

She really didn't mind the nickname, she was still hung up on the fact she gave her a job just to repay her for spilling her coffee on her. Sakura was nice, a little too energetic for her taste, but nice. Ten-Ten took a moment to look around the coffee shop she'd be working in from today on. The ceiling was a nice forest green and the walls had the same wooden texture as Sakura's bedroom walls; though these walls were decorated with old photographs, 80's band posters and other trinkets. To Ten-Ten, it was a homey, café version of that malt shop in the Back to the Future films; retro but cozy. She thought it was a shame that most customers where in such a hurry that they'd just pick their coffee and go; she found it kind of nice to sit, enjoy a coffee and look at all the things hanging on the walls. Every time she came, she saw something different.

"Alright! I got us a big one! And I brought a spare!" She heard Sakura call out as she descended down the stairs. Ten-Ten got up as soon as she was in sight and they both walked out of the shop together.

They walked a couple of blocks in the rain, thankful that there weren't any cars that could get them wet passing by.

"Sakura, don't you think it's strange? This is usually a busy street, where is everyone?" Just then, Sakura released a gasp "Ten-Ten! Look!"and as if on cue, Ten-Ten turned her head just as two cars crashed against each other. The pick-up truck ignored the red light and hit a car on the driver's side. Both vehicles skidded slightly to the side of the road, hitting the light pole and bending it. It all happened in the blink of an eye, and Ten-Ten couldn't help but think they probably died.

"Hurry! They might be hurt!" Before Ten-Ten had any time to react, Sakura handed her the umbrella and sprinted to the cars, ignoring Ten-Ten's calls for her to wait. Sakura quickly pulled out her cell phone and called an ambulance, while heading towards the damaged car and looking for the driver. She found a young man with his head leaning against the steering wheel, and in the passenger seat was a girl about the same age as her, also unconscious, with her head hanging to the side. Both had blood on their foreheads and a few cuts, the windows on the sides were cracked and the air-bags hanging from the dash and steering wheel.

"Quick! Check the pick-up, Tennie!" she ordered. Ten-Ten jogged to said vehicle, and looked inside. A middle-aged man was holding his head and groaning softly. While she asked him if he was okay and helped him off the car, they could hear sirens in the distance. Sakura hurriedly walked back to Ten-Ten when the ambulance arrived and explained what they saw. When they were dismissed and resumed walking, Ten-Ten could see how shaken Sakura was.

"Are you okay Sakura?" she asked, concern showing in her eyes. Sakura was slightly wide-eyed and shaking, and she was pretty sure it wasn't from the cold.

"Yeah, sorry. It's the adrenaline kicking in is all" she nervously smiled back at Ten-Ten and Sakura seemed to convince her. But her heart was beating like crazy; her arms and legs wouldn't stop shaking. Sakura was always afraid of cars; she could ride in them, but she always feared for her life. When she saw that truck speeding up from afar, she had the feeling something bad would happen. The moment the two cars collided, she felt her heart stop. Her breath got caught on her throat, and her instincts to check on those people kicked in. She didn't think, she didn't doubt. She just ran to help them, regardless of anything. While Sakura was lost in thought, they were already nearing the school. Ten-Ten stopped at the crosswalk to get to the block where the school was, and she noticed Sakura kept walking.

"SAKURA! WATCH OUT!" she screamed as she quickly dashed to her and pulled Sakura by the hood of her jacket. Just as she was out of harm's way, an old looking truck that read Movers in faded green letters sped by them. "Bastard! Slow the hell down!" she shouted after the white truck, and when it was out of sight, she turned her raging brown eyes at Sakura.

"WHAT THE HELL WHERE YOU DOING?! YOU ALMOST GOT KILLED AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE!" Before she could stop herself, she smacked Sakura in the back of the head. She was angry, and she wanted her to know that.

"Ow! Geez I get it Tennie, you don't have to hit so hard! You DO know I'm gonna be your boss right?!" Sakura said while looking up at her with a small pout.

"Sorry, I just got nervous"

"It's okay, I deserved it this time haha. I'm sorry too." When they got to the school, Ten-Ten saw the moving truck parked in front of the gates.

"Well see ya' later Sakura, I'm gonna give that jerk a piece of my mind!" she said angrily and all but stomped her way towards the truck. Sakura giggled and kept walking. She looked to her left to see another boy walking towards the school, and from what she could see, he was soaking wet. His raven hair clung to his face and his jacket dripped as he walked. _"Poor guy, I bet he's freezing! Hmm I think I've got a towel in here somewhere!" _as she thought that, she started looking inside her duffel bag. Once she found it and looked up, the boy wasn't there. Frantically looking for him, she saw him close to the school entrance. She ran and quickly caught up to him and started calling out when he entered through the school doors.

"Hey! Wait!" Getting no response, she tried again. The boy only kept walking. _"Maybe he can't hear me"_ she thought due to the soft echo of rock music she was able to make out as he walked. Sakura jogged and stopped in front of him, making him stop too. The moment she looked at him, she was breathless for the second time in one morning. The boy in front of her was beautiful. His alabaster skin contrasted with his dark hair and equally dark eyes, and his face like that of a statue, flawless, sharp and aristocratic. She only noticed she was rudely staring when his beautiful eyes, once showing no emotion, turned to irritated glare.

"What do you want?" he asked in a smooth, deep and cold voice.

"Erm… it's just that…you're wet" he raised his eyebrow, clearly annoyed with her stating the obvious.

"How very perceptive of you"

" I mean! You'll catch a cold! Here!" she said as she handed him the towel, looking down to hide her blushing cheeks. Embarrassed and red faced, Sakura ran down the hallway without turning back.

"Tch. Weirdo" he muttered. He took the towel and dried his hair, vaguely wondering how he would return it. He couldn't help but think her face reminded him of tomatoes. Shaking his head and getting rid of the thought, he walked towards the closest bathroom. When noticing it was empty, he took off his jacket and shirt and put them under the hand driers.

Sasuke sighed and muttered "this is going to be a long day" as he put his earphones back on.

"Hey you! Heeeeeeey! Wait up!" Ten-Ten shouted as she chased the moving truck. She was determined to scream at him how many insults she could come up with. Unfortunately for her, the truck left before she was close enough to stop it, and she could tell the driver had not heard her because she could hear loud music coming from the only vehicle in the street; the old creaky truck. She stopped running when she admitted it was a lost cause. Still fuming, she headed inside, knowing that she'd see the truck again. _"He's bound to show up to leave whoever here."_ She glanced at the front door, so she knew who the truck left, but only saw a flash of orange and 'yellow disappearing behind the closing doors. Sighing, Ten-Ten entered the building and headed for her classroom.

"Wow I sure got here early" said Naruto, looking around the empty halls. He whistled a happy tune while looking at the bulletin boards, lockers and classrooms as he passed them by. He'd barely seen anyone since he arrived, though it was no surprise considering that school didn't start until two hours from now. He stood in front of a blue bulletin board near his old locker, a little surprised to find TRY OUT flyers already posted for the basketball, soccer and cheerleading teems, along with a few announcements from the drama, art and dance clubs. Just as the blond turned away from the board, he felt all the air in his lungs leave his body, as a force sent him to the ground.

"AAH!" he heard a short, shrill scream as he fell.

"Oof! What the-?" he said as he sat up. All he could see was a pink blob on top of him. Said pink blob moved and also sat up, and when it did, his heart skipped a beat. The most exotic girl he'd ever seen was right in front of him; Rose colored locks and eyes the color of emerald adorned the alabaster skin of her cute face. Her eyes were big, her nose small and her lips full. He could only stare as she apologized over and over again. When he regained his senses, he finally spoke.

"No no no! It's no problem, I frankly wasn't looking where I was going either. My name's Naruto by the way! Naruto Balfe!" He stood and extended his hand to her, both to help her up and to shake, with a sheepish grin and what he hoped was a cheerful and friendly look on his face. Sakura looked up at his hands and quickly took it, smiling gratefully at him.

"Nice to meet you Naruto, I'm Sakura!" After apologizing for what Naruto felt was the hundredth time, they began a small chat as they walked towards their classroom. All Konoha High students receive their schedule via school e-mail. While learning they were on the same year, they looked for their schedules and compared, realizing they have three classes together; Homeroom, Chemistry and P.E. Ten-Ten was a year younger than them, so she had promised to see her at lunch.

Naruto and Sakura, still in conversation, entered their classroom only to find one other student already there. And to Sakura's complete embarrassment and horror, it was the pretty boy from earlier. And he was staring right at her. _"Oh please let me drop dead right now"._

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**And so they met! Woohoo! :D Hope you liked the chapter, I'll try to update soon. **

**-Aiiro Hart **


	6. Chapter 5

**All right! Chapter 5 is finally done! I apologize for the delay, I wanted to deliver this chapter as best as I could, and I hope I have succeeded! I hope you like it and remember to review the chapter! :) pretty please! **

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**CHAPTER 5**

**Getting To Know You **

Naruto, confused, kept looking back and forth between Sakura and Sasuke. She just stood there, wide eyed, frozen and mouth slightly agape while looking at Sasuke, and he in turned directed his onyx eyes at her, completely ignoring the blond. She was able to shake the embarrassment off when Sasuke abruptly stood up and started walking towards them. Slightly panicking, she stuttered trying to greet him, but stopped when he stood in front of her with his right hand stretched out to her. She looked down to see that he was returning the towel she gave him no less than an hour ago.

"Thank you." He handed her the towel and walked back to his seat. Now, Sasuke might be antisocial, among other things, but he was never impolite. After drying his clothes and hair he made his way to his classroom, still thinking on how to find the pink haired girl. He worried it would be harder than expected because her hair might be exotic, but this place was the size of a university campus. The moment he saw her enter the room he seized the opportunity to give it back. Sasuke nonchalantly walked back to his seat and replaced his earphones. The two other students in the room shared a glance and took a seat beside the window, in front of their quiet dark haired classmate. Naruto and Sakura quietly chatted the remaining time before the bell rang. Students slowly started entering and accommodating with their friends throughout the class room, bringing exciting energy with them. Sasuke silently sighed in disappointment when the silence ended.

A few minutes after the warning bell rang and all the students entered the classroom, a middle aged man-no older than 30- walked into the room. His very presence silenced the previously loud and excited students. Sakura wondered if what quieted them was his strong presence or his equally strong appearance. Frankly she didn't know what to expect from the tall, lean and masked figure in front of them. His dark eyes scanned the room, making eye contact with each and every one of the students. He walked to his desk in the left corner of the front, never looking away from the students, who in turn looked back at him attentively, nervously, expectantly. He dropped his leather case on top of the desk, making a loud thud when the bag made contact with the desk's wood. The silence was thick, and Naruto vaguely wondered if he could hear a pin drop.

"My name is Kakashi Hatake and I will be your homeroom and Literature teacher from today on." the silver haired man said in a deep, low and mysterious voice. He watched his students closely as they leaned in to hear him as he lowered his voice more with every word that came out of his covered lips. "Now we will start this semester…" the students leaned in more "by…" they were almost out of their seats, he could see their nervous eyes and tensed shoulders. They were intimidated, just the way he liked it before he-"breaking the ice with some nice reading!" he finished, his once dark voice changing completely. He chuckled and his eye crinkled at his students surprised, confused and perplexed faces. He laughed a little louder and relaxed his stiff posture, waving a hand at them. "Ah I'm sorry class, I couldn't let the opportunity to mess with you pass me by!" the students relaxed and laughed a little, some still a little skeptical about the odd professor.

Naruto raised his hand before speaking. "Then, is the goofy mask part of it too?" Kakashi was in front of him in an instant, eyes blazing and aura threatening. Naruto "eeped" and shrunk in his seat. "Never insult the mask. If there's something real here, it's the mask. The mask is everything!" he said, slowly and threateningly before settling back into an easygoing mood. Naruto gulped and made a mental note to be careful around the moody homeroom teacher. _"Sheesh he's just like Alfred."_ He thought. Sakura laughed a little at their exchange and continued to pay attention to their teacher as he explained what they would be studying throughout the year. As homeroom period ended, he dedicated the next hour and thirty minutes to his literature class.

"I will be dividing all of you into pairs. Each pair will receive a scene from either a play or a novel that you will re-enact with your partner in front of the class. Don't pay attention to the time gaps between pieces, since every scene I'll be handing out is from a different works, authors and time." Kakashi explained. As the students began to protest, he clarified that they would receive points for the activity, and that it was his way to "break the ice" and familiarize the class with each other. "Or would you rather come up here and tell us all a boring auto-biography instead?" with that, the class settled. "Excellent! Since we will be doing this activity in pairs and all, you will choose where you want to do it, depending on your piece, of course. You can pick between the class room, the library, the theater, the courtyard, the rooftop, the cafeteria and the fifth floor from the faculty building."

"But, isn't the fifth floor empty?" a student asked. Kakashi gave her a wink "precisely!" He then proceeded to divide the class into pairs. He explained that every student would work with the person sitting behind him or her. Naruto smiled triumphantly and turned to work with Sakura, but just then, a boy with spiky brown hair and his clothes and hair messy entered the room.

"I'm so sorry! I overslept and then I got lost!" he said as he quickly sat down in the only seat available; in front of Naruto. "Aw man!" Naruto whined. He then started explaining to the other boy what was happening when he saw his confused expression. At seeing this, Sakura turned to whoever was sitting behind her and gave a friendly smile to start off. When she looked up, she remembered that she was sitting in front of Sasuke. Eyes wide and somewhat nervous, she pulled her desk a little closer to Sasuke's. "Calm down Sakura, he's just a boy for Christ's sake! You have nothing to be nervous about" she looked at him and he nodded her way, letting her know he wasn't ignoring her. She watched as Sasuke pulled out his earphones and put his Ipod away before nodding in her direction again and looking towards the teacher. "_Good. This will be good_" she thought before relaxing and also looking at Kakashi.

Kakashi started walking through the rows, handing papers randomly at each pair. When Sakura and Sasuke got theirs, they looked at the tittle. "The Cask of Amontillado, by Edgar Allan Poe" she read aloud. She glanced at the boy beside her and watched as his eyes sparked with interest. "Kind of a dark one, huh?" she said. Sasuke turned to her, mildly surprised. "You know Poe?"

"Oh yeah," she nodded "I love his work, and this is actually one of my favorites. But I honestly wasn't expecting something like this to "break the ice"" she said, smiling sheepishly. "By the way, I never got your name" "It's Sasuke, and you?" "Sakura. Nice to meet you." In the remaining time, Sasuke and Sakura talked about some of Poe's works and which were their favorites and why. Also, they planned on how they would do the re-inaction and where.

"I think we should do it in the fifth floor" Sasuke said "Since it's empty, and has been for a couple of years, I'm sure its dusty and dark enough to resemble the catacombs" Sakura nods and agrees with him. The fifth floor would be perfect for the scene. The class period ended and they both picked up their things. Kakashi had just left after reminding them to be ready by Wednesday. "Where are you headed now Sasuke?" she asked while turning to him. "I've got Math." "Oh, I've got history. Oh well, I guess I'll be seeing you" she smiled at him and waved. Sasuke nodded at her direction and watched as she walked to join Naruto. She might be a little odd looking, but Sasuke didn't find her as annoying as he thought he would. When he realized Sakura would be his partner he was dreading every minute he would have to tolerate her empty headedness, but he was surprised to find she was quite smart and was interested in Poe. Sasuke walked out the room and headed for his next class, his earphones back in place as he sauntered through the crowded hallway effortlessly.

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"Say, Naruto, do you know anything about Sasuke?" Sakura asked her blond friend as they walked through the door to the history class room. Because the students have ten minutes to switch between classrooms and their class had been released three minutes early, the room was empty. They walked to the back right corner of the room and seated themselves beside the glass window.

"Not really. He doesn't talk much. We were in some classes last semester so all I know is that he's smart and pretty much keeps to himself" said Naruto, shrugging his shoulders in a casual manner as he placed his orange backpack on his desk and took out a strange looking frog shaped wallet. Sakura giggled silently while watching him sigh in disappointment at finding his wallet empty. She turned to the window and leaned her head in her hand. The last thing she heard her blond classmate say before she resulted to daydreaming was a grumpy complaint about having to ask his "old man" for money during lunch period.

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The bell signaling that lunch period had begun rang loudly through the school hallways. A determined glint shone in Ten-ten's brown eyes as she stood quickly and exited her Algebra class. Her stride was swift as she passed countless people and dodged random things being thrown from one side of the hall to the other. None of these distractions mattered to the brunette, for she was too focused on getting to the school cafeteria as soon as she could. With a fiery light in her eyes, she sped walked through what seemed like a sea of people and entered through the double doors of the cafeteria. In all her haste, she failed to notice the pink haired girl she passed right in front of, with her mouth hanging open and a shock, slightly confused look in her green eyes. Sakura soon followed after the brunette and crossed the double doors. When she entered, she was surprised her name was being called.

"Sakura! Over here!" Ten-ten shouted, waving her hand to her from a table with a triumphant grin painted on her face.

"Tennie! What's the matter? You almost run over me in the hall!" she said as she sat across from Ten-ten. She in turn laughed embarrassedly and apologized. "It's just that I love the cheese Danish they sell here and they're the first to go out!" she explained. Sakura rose an eyebrow at her. "You mean those disgusting, greasy looking things in a bag?" "No silly! Those are the consolation prize for the losers who don't manage to get here on time!" she says as she pulls out a beautifully prepared cheese Danish, delicately glazed with cream cheese icing and carefully packed.

"These little devils are the stuff they bake every morning! That's why the halls always smell sweet during early hours!"

"Huh, I didn't even know they _baked_ here" Sakura said, not bothering to hide her surprise. She took a bite of the cheese Danish Ten-ten had bought for her.

"Yeah, it's supposed to be a secret. Say, where's your blond friend? I saw you two walking down the hall a while back"

"Oh! That's Naruto, I met him this morning. He made plans with his other friends, I guess." The two continued to eat in silence due to the students pouring in the cafeteria, their booming voices drowning their conversation. They were about to leave before the sudden cheer of the students stopped Sakura from walking away. Ten-ten was in front of her and kept walking until she was a few steps away and noticed Sakura was not following. She turned to her and saw as Sakura's face changed completely from her usually cheerful self. Her skin had paled; her fists had clenched and were shaking, her mouth transformed into a disgusted and somewhat intimidating snarl and her eyes were blazing with anger, a rage so piercing and intense that for a moment Ten-ten couldn't recognize her. Ten-ten followed her gaze and saw her eyes were focused on a crowd cheering. She took off after a stomping Sakura but stopped when she saw what was happening. The crowd was encircling a chubby boy who was looking down silently as two guys and a girl threw his lunch to the ground and scattered all of his belongings. They were laughing and insulting the poor kid, calling him names for his body shape and looks. When Ten-ten directed her eyes towards the girl insulting him, she was incredibly shocked. If she were just standing there, quietly, Ten-ten could have mistaken her for an angel.

Long strawberry blond hair flowed down to the small of her back, her fair skin looked smooth and perfect in the sunlight pooling through the huge windows of the cafeteria, and her eyes shone an icy blue when the sunlight hit. Her laugh broke Ten-ten out of her stupor and she gasped as the blonde took the boy's milkshake and hovered it above his head, about to pour it on his light brown hair. As her hand turned, slowly, to pour the drink Ten-ten's eyes widened at the equally pale hand that shot out from the crowd and stopped her. The crowd grew quiet as the girl angrily looked at the person interrupting her fun and she was met with a pair of green eyes blazing with anger.

"I don't even care to know what the hell you think you're doing" Sakura says, her voice so low and threatening that the girl flinched "If you so much as pour a single drop on him, you'll regret it." The blonde huffed, livid and shocked "And just WHO do you think YOU are to tell me what to do?" Sakura's grip on her wrist tightened and with a shriek the girl dropped the milkshake. The glass made a soft clattering sound as it hit the ground and its contents spilled in the white tile, sprinkling all who were close enough. "You little BITCH! Do you know how much these shoes cost?!" she is livid as icy blue eyes meet equally angry emerald ones. "I don't really care! They could be worth my house and I wouldn't care! All I care about right now is for you to apologize to him and promise not to do it again!" the rosette shouted while squeezing the blonde's wrist even tighter.

"Are you crazy?! Do you even know who I am!?"

"I just told you-" the rude blonde cut her off

"I am Ino Yamanaka! Niece of the school principal and I could have you kicked out of here with a snaps of my fingers!" she shouted again. The whole cafeteria was silent, waiting to hear Sakura's response.

A single phrase was heard, coming from Ten-ten "Oh shit".

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**This is the end of chapter five XD I hope you enjoyed the chapter and please review! I will start working on chapter six soon X3**

**-Aiiro Hart**


	7. Chapter 6

**All right! This chapter took a little longer than expected -sorry for that- but I wanted to shape the following events according to my plans *Evil laugh* well! enjoy! and please review! :) **

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**CHAPTER 6**

**The Day We Fought**

The only thing interrupting the silence in the heavy atmosphere was the constant ticking of the pendulum clock hung over her head as she calmly scanned the room. The four walls were a pale green, and the three she had on sight had abstract and colorful paintings placed in the middle of each wall. To her right, behind the girl currently glaring daggers at her, sat a bookshelf full with psychology books, encyclopedias and many types of intellectual literature. Across from her sat the school secretary, who was shifting nervous glances between the girls sat in front of her and the files in her desk. Sakura inwardly sighed. _"How did we even end up here?" _she leaned her head against the wall, careful not to damage herself any further, and closed her eyes; remembering the events that got them to the principal's office in the first place.

_She saw red. She had just finished her lunch when she saw a beautiful blond girl accompanied by two boys came in. She and Ten-ten got up and threw their trash and were walking out of the cafeteria when she heard it. _

"_How's it going fatso? Still gorging like a pig, I see" a delicate voice coated with mockery caught Sakura's attention. She glanced to see the pretty blond she saw before approaching a brown haired boy sitting in the far corner of the cafeteria, pursing his lips and looking down nervously, as if silently praying he could be invisible. His face reddened and his eyes watered as she reached the table, leaned in and whispered something Sakura couldn't hear; though she was sure it was an insult when the tear fell from his eye. The boys behind the blond snickered and threw the smaller boy's things across the room, scattering his notebooks, papers and books. _

"_What's the matter? Mouth too busy chewing to even say hello?" with a cruel laugh, the girl took his glass and was about to pour it on his head. Sakura had her by the arm before she even noticed. She felt her mouth move, she felt herself catch her breath to keep speaking, but she was so angry she couldn't hear a thing but the wrath inside of her. She squeezed her arm until the blond dropped the glass. She finally bothered to listen to the seething blond when she saw her face turn red from the anger, and when she paid close attention to her words, she heard her say:_

"_You little BITCH! Do you know how much these shoes cost?!"Sakura scoffed. She was more worried about her shoes than the hurt he was causing this poor kid? "I don't really care! They could be worth my house and I wouldn't care! All I care about right now is for you to apologize to him and promise not to do it again!" Their argument continued as the blond yelled her name and introduced herself as the principal's daughter. Sakura doesn't like threats as much as she dislikes people being mistreated. The last thing she heard was Ten-ten muttering "Oh shit" before she was consumed in rage again._

_Sakura lightly pushed Ino away from the boy. She looked at her with angry icy blue eyes and released a loud shriek before leaping towards her and yanking Sakura's pink locks. She in turn grabbed her hands and tried to break free from Ino's grip on her hair. The two stumbled against tables and each other, pulling and pushing each other while Ino yelled different ways on how she would get Sakura expelled. The crowd around the two was getting livelier as they kept yelling "Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!"_

_Ino managed to push Sakura against a table and pin her on top of it by throwing her weight on her. "Huh, clearly you're not such a great fighter, Miss Yamanaka!" Sakura said, throwing her a glare. She took advantage of the blonde's momentarily confused expression to twist herself quickly out of her grip and pulling her by her long hair and flinging her across the narrow path between tables. The students "oohed" as she was slammed face-first against the wall and a cracking sound emerged from the collision. Ino released tears and a blood-curling scream and fell on her knees, holding her now broken and bleeding nose._

"_Sakura!" said girl turned at the sound of her friend's voice. She saw the brunette was unsuccessfully trying to reach her through the sea of bodies. She tried to push through and weasel her way to the front; to either aid Sakura or get her out, she wasn't sure. Ten-ten continued to fight her way through when she saw the blonde beauty, now with a bleeding nose, get up and grab the stricken boy's tray. Before she could warn her, Ino had struck Sakura with the plastic lunch tray in the back of the head. The pink haired girl fell to the floor with a thud, and for a moment, everyone was still. Quiet. Shocked. Expectant. Ten-ten felt her breath leave her when she saw her friend's blood start to ooze out of her head and tinting her hair a deep crimson. Ino's eyes widened in horror; thinking for a moment that she had killed the meddlesome girl. Before she could utter a word or even see if the pink haired girl was alive, she felt her feet leave the ground and a massive pain on her side. Ten-ten, after seeing Sakura's blood, didn't think twice before jumping into action. She cleared a path to the nearest table and jumped from it right into the blonde's side, tackling her to the ground and pinning her down. "I'll kill you!" she said as she started punching the pretty blonde's face. She punched Ino's already broken nose, her mouth, her cheeks and chin, making her head constantly collide with the floor. _

_The crowd gasped and the boys who were with Ino- until now just watching- jumped into the circle formed around the fighting girls. Each boy took Ten-ten by the arms and dragged her off and away from Ino, holding her with a bruising grip. She struggled against their iron grip as she watched Ino stand up and approach her. Ten-ten managed to land a swift kick on her stomach before being thrown and pressed into the ground by the boys holding her. She struggled to breathe with their weight in her back. She was lightheaded and slightly sore from the pressure the muscled boys were exerting on her, and she could feel herself starting to faint. She could also feel a headache forming when her head hit the cold tile and the side of her face was pinned with the rest of her body. Ten-ten couldn't move. She glanced at Sakura and saw that she was conscious, looking at her and mouthing "I got this" with a tired, pained smile. She figured Sakura was just as –if not more- dizzy than she was, considering the growing amount of blood dripping from her now completely red hair. The last thing Ten-ten heard before the dizziness took over was a strong, echoing voice yell "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" _

Sakura's thoughts were interrupted as the door leading to the principal's office opened and a tall blond woman came out. She leaned against the door frame and looked at each of the students seated in her waiting office. Sakura managed to identify the surprise in the woman's amber colored eyes before she steeled herself. She paid no attention to their current battered states and straightened up. Her strong and commanding voice broke the silence "All right, all of you, in my office NOW"

Tsunade wasn't having a good day. She was woken up by the sounds of knocking on her door. She opened her eyes and lifted her head, looking around the room and realizing that once again, she spent the night at the office. Her door opened to reveal her assistant and old friend Shizune walk through the door with a pill and glass of water in her hands and walked to her desk as if this occurrence, where Tsunade spent the night in the office, shifting between doing paper work and drinking, was something common. Her head was pounding and she was feeling nauseous and lightheaded; she glanced at Shizune when she noticed she was talking.

"Please shut the hell up. I just woke up from another all-nighter and I'm really not in the mood for your problems" Shizune shook her head, her moving short black hair momentarily distracting the hung-over blonde. Yes, as much as the very intellectual Tsunade hated to admit it, she was easily distracted.

"Well if you _must_ know Tsunade, it's already twelve thirty; you've already slept through half the day. And even more importantly, there's been a huge fight in the cafeteria, and all the students involved are currently waiting for you in the waiting room. Now sober up and do your job" she said calmly, giving her blond friend a knowing look and handing her the pill. Tsunade took the painkiller and glass and waved Shizune off.

"Sure, sure, get me their files; I'll be out in a few". She walked to her door and looked in the mirror hanging on it. She fixed her disheveled strawberry blond hair into two low pigtails, wiped off her smudged make-up and changing her rumpled, wrinkled white shirt for an identical one stored in the cabinet in the far corner beside her desk. Giving herself one final look in the mirror, she turns the doorknob and leans in the doorway to see who the troublemakers were, to say she was surprised was an understatement. The students waiting for her were those who she thought she would never see in her office, or at least most of them. "_What in the world happened while I was out cold? A civil war?" _with slight disappointment of missing a good fight, and –of course- surprised at the almost impossible sight that greeted her, she decided to speak. Clearly, commanding and curt; just the way she liked it.

"All right, all of you, in my office, NOW!" The six students stood quietly and quickly scuttled into the office. They each took a seat in front of the mahogany desk as Tsunade walked to her chair while studying their faces carefully. The odd girl with pink hair was holding an ice pack against the back of her bandaged head, blood caked in her hair and skin; a brunette girl with a bruised cheek, and her niece with a broken nose and bruised cheeks. To say she was surprised was an understatement, though she would never admit to anyone but Shizune she almost laughed at Ino's embarrassed, enraged and humiliated expression. She turned to the remaining three; a blushing, nervous chubby boy, a slightly irritated blond with scratches on his cheeks, and another she thought she would never had to deal with directly. She glanced at each of their files before deciding to speak her mind.

"Well, out of all these surprising events" she said as she pulled out the chair "I would like YOU to explain how you could possibly be involved in all this" she said as she pointed at one of the students with a questioning look. Out of all of the students in Konoha High, the one she least expected to ever see in her office was this reserved boy. She had to blink a few times to make sure she wasn't dreaming or still under the influence of all the rum she consumed the previous night.

He sighed "Well, it's a long story" he cast an annoyed glance of the brown haired boy beside him, who in turn laughed nervously and offered a quick apology.

"Oh don't worry Mr. Uchiha, that's what we're here for. Please_ do_ tell me how you were involved in the cafeteria warfare" she said with a hint of dry humor.

And so, with another heavy sigh, Sasuke started to explain how he ended up in the middle of the cafeteria when Sakura confronted Ino.

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**End of the chapter! :D I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The next chapter will include Sasuke's side of the story and how he's involved in this mess ;D I hope you look forward to it! **

**-Aiiro Hart**


	8. Chapter 7

**Hello again! I apologize for the very late update, but I've been very busy lately. I want to take the time to thank all of you for keeping up with this story and for those of you who reviewed, I am very thankful for your kind words. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think! ^_^ So without further delay, here's chapter seven!**

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**CHAPTER 7**

**The Price We Pay**

Sasuke leaned back in his chair. He could feel the other's gaze on him, questioning, curious and prodding. He fought back his annoyance and the instinct to glare at them and started to sort through his memories to best retell what happened. The sooner he finished, the sooner he could go. And so, with another heavy sigh, he started.

_Sasuke had just walked out of his last class before lunch break. He was making his way towards the cafeteria to meet with an old acquaintance of his. He maneuvered through the crowd of students starting to fill the halls and heading in every direction. As he walked, a flash of pink caught his eye before it disappeared into the sea of people, making him stop and think of where she might be headed. He sighed as he realized that the odd girl from earlier that morning probably shared the same destination as he. He silently hoped he wouldn't have to interact with her as he resumed walking towards the cafeteria in a long stride, checking his pockets for his wallet. Taking a hold of it and seeing he had no money, he reached for his phone and dialed. The phone rang three times before the other end picked up. _

"_Hey Sasuke! Where are you? I feel like I've been waiting forever"_

"_Hn. I'll be a little late; I'm going to the bank in Baker Street to get some cash."_

"_Baker Street?! Oh come ON Sasuke, that's like two blocks away! You won't make it back in time for a decent lunch!" his eye twitched at the implication that he was slow. The bank was only fifteen minutes away by foot, and with Sasuke's long strides, he would get there and back in ten minutes. _

"_Well just get me anything; I'll pay you once I get back." And with that, Sasuke hung up and put on his earphones, changing his course to the main entrance of the school. He walked out the school and crossed the street, thankful that Konoha High gave students the liberty of going outside the premises in their spare time. He walked down the side walk, passing through various shops and hurrying workers coming and going to restaurants and cafes. After entering the bank and withdrawing money from his account, he hurried back to the school and when he entered through the double doors, he could hear students' excited conversations. A boy bumped into his shoulder, stumbling and apologizing before saying "there's an awesome fight going down in the cafeteria right now! You can't miss it!" and running towards said place. Sasuke, surprised, wondered why he hadn't received a text or call from who he was meeting. Usually, he knew everything that was going on and would text Sasuke about it all the time. As much as he hated it, it surprised him that he forgot to tell him about it. "Is the fight that good that he forgot to tell me?" he wondered. He made his way to the double doors of the cafeteria and entered. The sight that greeted him surprised him greatly. There was a huge crowd formed on the far corner of the cafeteria, shouting "Fight!" repeatedly to encourage the students involved. Sasuke calmly made his way to a table, standing on its surface to better locate his friend. His eyes widened as a flash of pink caught his eye again. The odd pink haired girl was lying on the floor, her hair tinted crimson with blood. Her brunette friend was being pinned to the floor by two seniors, and a blonde girl with a bloody face was angrily making her way to them. Sasuke could hear a faint sobbing being drowned by the students' loud cheering, and when he paid closer attention, he saw a chubby brown haired boy, covered in his lunch and barely recognizable, shaking and gaping at the scene unfolding in front of him. He saw the girl pinned to the ground faint, probably form lack of air. And just then, an angry, loud voice boomed through the cafeteria. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" the male voice said. _

_Everyone turned to the sound of the voice and found a blond boy, who Sasuke recognized as his classmate, Naruto, angry and red-faced in front of the back doors of the cafeteria a little further away from the fight. He, like the sobbing boy, was shaking, but not from shock or fright. Sasuke could tell he was livid; it showed clearly in his sapphire eyes. Without wasting time, he ran towards the nearest table and jumped into the circle the crowd had made. He tackled one of the boys holding the girl down and the other left her to help his friend. Naruto tried his best to fight both off. He grabbed the lighter one of the two and tossed him to the side, accidentally throwing him towards the still shaking boy. When the boy let out a yelp, Sasuke realized that it was his acquaintance that was shaking and sobbing and currently about to be beaten by the boy on top of him._

_Sasuke jumped from table to table until he too jumped into the circle. He was a black belt in more than ten types of martial arts; he knew this fight wouldn't be a problem and he would end it quickly. He swiftly pulled the boy from the other one and punched him in the jaw, then the stomach, and knocking him out with an open fist at the back of his neck. Glancing at Naruto, and seeing him cut and almost out of breath, he kicked the side of the other boy's head and knocked him out as well. _

_Without a word, he took out a handkerchief from his back pocket and handed it to the food stained boy and made his way to the fallen girls, completely ignoring the amazed and blushing blond girl looking at him. He knelt by the bleeding Sakura and swiftly scooped her up in his arms, with his left arm hooked under her knees and his right behind her back, leaning her head carefully to his chest. He could feel her blood starting to seep and stain his black shirt, and he was almost worried at the amount of blood that was actually coming out of her head. He glanced at Naruto, then at Ten-ten, silently indicating him to do the same and follow him. With a glare to the crowd, they made way for them to get through and exit the cafeteria through the black back door and head to the infirmary. _

_Konoha high's infirmary was greatly equipped for almost anything. The room was big enough to hold fifteen beds neatly rowed against the two side walls. The storage room contained medicine for almost anything and they even had a small blood bank. There was no nurse there, because this medical facility was run by a genuine doctor, who was also the principal's assistant and long life friend. Everybody knew how well prepared and diverse Shizune and Tsunade where, and that was probably one of the reasons they were so respected in the campus. Two young, beautiful and incredibly intelligent women was something to be really proud and admiring of, it seemed. When Sasuke and Naruto entered the white room they were greeted by three things; the overwhelming smell of disinfectant, white fluorescent lights clashing against white bed sheets and tiles, and a fuming Shizune, her foot expectantly in the middle of the room for a moment before she assessed the situation and directed them where to place the girls. _

"_you two have a lot of explaining to do" the furious voice of Shizune "you better be ready for whatever the principal throws your way. She absolutely doesn't tolerate fights." She said as she quickly examined Ten-ten and moving to attend Sakura after making sure the brunette was alright. She ushered them out of the infirmary with the order to go tell the principal what happened. When they got to the main office, Ino was already there, glaring daggers at them._

After that they just sat there in silence until the other girls came in. Shizune had to separate both blonds from Sakura, one with killing intent and the other with the intention of bear hugging her. To Sasuke, both actions could've had her killed. After finishing his side of the story, Sasuke leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees and his interlaced hands pressed to his face, hiding it from the bottom of his nose to his chin. He looked up to meet Tsunade's eyes, unaware of the blushing pink haired girl staring at him. Sakura's embarrassment was written plainly on her face, as was Ino's indignation, Naruto's annoyance and Ten-ten's glare being directed at the blonde girl.

Tsunade briefly glanced at the sixth student, who until now had said nothing. He was shifting uncomfortably from left to right in his seat since they got here, hands twiddling nervously and slight perspiration forming on his temple. "So, have you anything to add to this, Mr. Akimichi?"

At hearing the principal address him, the boy snapped his head to look at her and quickly stutter a 'no'. Sasuke had taken care of explaining as much as the problem needed to be explained, he didn't see a need for them to know about the constant bullying of the other students. Sasuke glanced at him, his eyes both glaring and understanding of the boy's shame. "Choji" he said "we're already here, you might as well say what's on your mind". Said boy glanced at the raven haired boy he was waiting for and shook his head. "No, Sasuke. If I ever do decide to do so, I'll come here on my own. But thank you for your concern." He was tempted to deny concern for Choji, but decided to look back to the principal instead. His eyes narrowed and uneasiness settled in him when he saw Tsunade's pink lips turn into a somewhat evil and plotting grin as she moved her eyes from face to face.

"All right then!" she said, her strong voice tinted with a malicious glee that made them all look at her suspiciously. "I have just the thing to settle this kind of thing. So as to not complicate myself with deciding who's responsible and who's not, I'll just punish all of you!" She raised her hand before Ino had the chance to complain. "You'll eventually know what you did wrong. Now let me finish. Your punishment for today's action will be…" she paused, inwardly chuckling at the tension she could see in her students as they leaned in, both eager and nervous of what the punishment might be. Sakura's heartbeat quickened at the thought of expulsion. She watched as Tsunade made eye contact with each of them again and grinned wider.

"…community service!" She finished in a cheerful voice slightly coated with cynicism. The room instantly turned quiet, the only sound being the soft hum of the air conditioner.

And that's when Sakura knew all hell would break loose.

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**Tadaa! And so chapter seven ends. I'm sorry if it was short, I promise next one will make up for it, as I'm already working on it and plan to submit it soon. Thank you for reading another chapter of my story, Finding Solace. Please review and until next time! :D**

**Aiiro Hart **


	9. Chapter 8

**HELLO ONCE AGAIN! I am so sorry for the very late update, I've been very busy XD . I want to thank all you wonderful reviwers for taking the time to express your thoughts and you readers for taking the time to read my story. I hope you continue to do so and enjoy it. Well, without further due, here's chapter 8! Enjoy! :D **

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**CHAPTER 8**

**The Beginning of a Journey **

"_All right then!" she said, her strong voice tinted with a malicious glee that made them all look at her suspiciously. "I have just the thing to settle this kind of thing. So as to not complicate myself with deciding who's responsible and who's not, I'll just punish all of you!" She raised her hand before Ino had the chance to complain. "You'll eventually know what you did wrong. Now let me finish. Your punishment for today's action will be…" she paused, inwardly chuckling at the tension she could see in her students as they leaned in, both eager and nervous of what the punishment might be. Sakura's heartbeat quickened at the thought of expulsion. She watched as Tsunade made eye contact with each of them again and grinned wider. She could swear a special glint shone in her amber eyes when they looked at her. _

"…_community service!" She finished in a cheerful voice slightly coated with cynicism. The room instantly turned quiet, the only sound being the soft hum of the air conditioner. _

_And that's when Sakura knew all hell would break loose. _

She glanced to the girl who she fought at the cafeteria from the corner of her eye, knowing she would be the first to burst from anger. She could see the pretty blonde's face already reddening in fury. Ino swiftly stood from her chair and slammed her open palms into the principal's desk, making Tsunade look up from a file she was uninterestingly skimming. The loud sound seemed to echo through the otherwise quiet office and startle Choji, making him drop a bag of cookies he was trying to open. Sakura's eyes followed a single cookie that rolled away from the rest and, almost dramatically, gently tapped Ino's purple heeled shoe and fell. _"3…2…1"_

"WHAT DID YOUSAY?! HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY EXPECT ME TO THAT?! WHAT IN THE WORLD MAKES YOU THINK I'M GONNA-"

"QUIET!" a single, powerful command from Tsunade instantly silenced her. Tsunade assumed an identical position as hers and held her steady gaze against Ino's surpriced blue eyes. Their silent conversation seemed to work in the elder blonde's favor when Ino's eyes broke contact and she begrudgingly sat back down, lowering her head to the now glaring principal. Tsunade sighed and relaxed her shoulders, before she sat again.

"As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted" another glare thrown to Ino "you will all be doing community service to make up for your actions. And of course… "she glanced at the students as Naruto's hand raised bashfully. "Yes Uzumaki?" "Erm…what exactly did we do so badly that we have to do community service?"

Tsunade stood again, slowly and gracefully walking around her desk and making her way to the boy's seat. She stood in front of him as she spoke, leaning in with a low voice "What did you do, you ask? Well, not only did you break twelve rules in one go and do one of the things I detest most, which is fighting, you also destroyed school property. The little coward here" she points to Ino, who huffed in indignation "broke a tray on one of your classmate's head. This one-" she points to Sasuke "Broke five chairs while doing his Jackie Chan moves; and you!" this time, Tsunade leaned in more, almost menacingly "I just don't like you" she finished simply in a sing song voice. She pulled back and gave a smile to Naruto's perplexed and unbelieving face.

Sakura couldn't help but giggle a little at his open mouth and wide eyes. To her, he seemed like a cartoon fish out of water. Unconsciously, Naruto pouted and sank lower on his chair, mumbling something along the lines of "how can she not like me? I'm adorable." Tsunade's voice got Sakura's attention once more.

"Anyways! You will report here tomorrow at 8am for a brief orientation on what you'll be doing. Since today's Friday,- because some genius decided it would be a good idea to start classes today-, you won't start to work right away, you will start next Monday. All of your classes will be squeezed to fit a schedule from 7am to 12pm. At twelve thirty you will report to your assigned place and do whatever task is assigned."

"Excuse me, principal" Sakura intervened "but how are we supposed to fit six classes on such a short time limit? Won't our teachers be busy with other classes? And what about lunch and study hall?" "Glad you ask. Well don't worry about the scheduling arrangement. Shizune will appoint a teacher who will instruct all six classes through that time, and lunch will be provided for you. Now, stop by after classes today to get your new schedules. Alright, I'm done here" she finished, getting up and walking to the door. She opened it and stood by, quickly yelling at them to leave. "Except you, Haruno"

Sakura gulped, nervous about what the principal might want. She made her way back to her seat and anxiously waited for Tsunade to sit. She was unconsciously wringing one of her head bandages in her hands, clutching it so hard her knuckles turned white. The principal slowly walked towards her and leaned on the desk; she could feel her amber eyes studying her, and when she peeked up from the pink locks shielding her lowered face, she could see the scrutinizing gaze with which she looked at her. Before Sakura could say anything, a booming, hearty laughter broke the silence between them. Her emerald eyes widened at Tsunade's remarkable change of character as she laughed; her shoulders relaxing and her posture bending a little and becoming more casual. The blonde woman sat in her desk and gave her a smirk.

"I must say, Haruno, you look like shit." Sakura could only nod her head in silent agreement. She glanced at the mirror hanging from the door and saw a girl with bloody pink hair, bruised and scratched face and rumpled and dirty uniform staring back at her. Sakura suddenly saw her face redden in embarrassment. The principal is right, she looks horrible. "But" the woman says, catching Sakura's attention again " I must also say I'm kind of proud of you girl! You beat my niece just as much as she beat you! Haha thank goodness for that, that brat needed to be put in her place, maybe now she won't be such a pain on the neck. Haha I like you, you've got nerve. " Tsunade was grinning at her, and for a moment, Sakura was confused. _"So she kept me here to praise me for beating up her niece?" _"Does that mean I'm not in trouble and can be spared from the community service thing?" Tsunade's grin widened and her lips released a carefree laugh, making Sakura hope she was right.

"oh my dear Sakura, not even the earth splitting open and swallow me whole is gonna save you from that"

"Oh well, can't blame a girl for trying." She said sheepishly. Tsunade dismissed her and told her to call Shizune in on her way out of the office. Shizune soon entered and approached the still smiling blonde. Tsunade was sitting on her desk, chewing on a pencil and reading the newspaper. The blonde handed her the files she had been skimming through and, without looking at her, mumbled "here, have these student's schedules rearranged; I left you a note inside with all the specifications and details of this new arrangement. Have them ready for 4pm today."

The dark haired woman sighed, took the files and turned to leave, but stopped when her name was called again. "And when you're done with that, go and take inventory of the supplies in the infirmary. Don't want us running short on anything like last year." Shizune sighed again, as she remembered how after the first week of school they had run out of bandages because the seniors thought it would be fun to wrap the freshmen in bandages and hang them through the halls like Halloween decorations.

She still wondered how they even managed to get the bandages, let alone have the time to get the freshman. Without a word, the woman left the office and returned to her desk, determined to finish her work quickly. "I don't think I get paid enough for all I do" As she positioned her delicate fingers over the cool surface of the computer keyboard and moved to type, she heard her blonde friend's voice call out to her from the office.

"Oh! And Shizune?" she heard her say in the pleading tone she has come to know so well. The black haired woman sighed once more "yes, Tsunade?" "When you're done with the inventory, go to the teacher's lounge. There's a teacher meeting for something I really don't care about knowing"

* * *

His worn out sneakers squeaked against the white tile of the halls with every step he took. He didn't know where he was going, and at the moment he didn't care. Because classes were about to end, Naruto saw no need to even bother to find his last class of the day. With the excuse that they would receive a new schedule anyways, the blond decided to find a solitary and quiet place to nap. He had thought of the library, until he discovered he snored loudly when the librarian smacked his head with a magazine and asked him to leave for disrupting the quiet room. Naruto stifled the incoming sigh of giving up on finding a nice napping spot when he was momentarily distracted by a silhouette he registered from the corner of his cobalt eyes. He curiously glanced to his right, and through a window that showed the back courtyard, very near the forest, he saw Sasuke leaning against the bark of a tree, eyes closed and headphones neatly in place.

"Why didn't I think of that?" almost as if feeling he was being watched, Sasuke opened his eyes when Naruto moved to head in his direction. The blond stopped and the two students held each other's stares. Before Naruto could do anything to break the uncomfortable atmosphere that suddenly nagged him, the raven haired boy stood and walked away, into the forest.

"Geez, to think I'm gonna work with _that_ guy for God knows how long. I'm sure we'll be the _best_ of friends. Oh well! Thanks for the tree buddy!" Naruto made his way outside and quickly nestled against the tree, finally relaxing and closing his eyes. He could hear his cellphone ringing faintly in his pocket, and with his eyes still closed, he reached into it and answered the phone.

"hello?" he said in a relaxed and sleepy voice, before being startled by the booming and harsh voice on the other end "DON'T JUST 'HELLO' ME SO CAREFREELY YA' BRAT! WHAT'S THIS I HEAR OF YOU GETTING INTO A FIGHT?! Naruto when I get there you—"

"Hey, hey, hey, wait a second Al! How did you even know?! Are you spying on me? Holly ramen bowls you tapped my phone didn't you?! You frickin' sew microphones into my jacket or something! That's not cool—"

"Naruto…-sigh- sometimes I forget how special you are" the irritated Irish voice of Alfred, now a little more calm, tiredly said. "Aww thanks Al! You're special too!" the blond said

"Kid…did you actually think the school wouldn't call and tell me what happened? Or were you somehow scheming on what embellished story to tell me when you got home?" After a long silence, Naruto hung up the phone and opened his eyes. "Aw man!"

* * *

The sound of the bell ringing for the last time in the day seemed to boom and bounce from the white walls as students eagerly picked up their things and made their way out the door. Their excited chatter filled the halls, talking about their plans for the weekend and such matters. Choji could only sigh as he trudged to the door, heading in the opposite direction of everyone else; to the principal's office instead of the exit. After a few turns he felt someone fall into step with him and with a glance he identified Sasuke walking nonchalantly beside him, his characteristic blue earphones in place. The two teens made their way to the principal's office quietly, one enjoying his music and the other a bag of beef jerky after offering some to his companion.

"Say Sasuke, any plans for the weekend?"

"Not quite"

"Well, good! At least your great expectations for a nice lunch in the BBQ buffet ain't ruined!"

"Choji, is there anything you do unrelated to food?"

"Well, does sleeping count even if my dreams have food?" His only reply from Sasuke was a heavy sigh followed by silence.

* * *

"_From 7 to 8: History and Literature; 8 to 9: Mathematics. From 9 to 10: Study Hall. From 10 to 11: Chemistry and from 11 to 12, Physics." _Sakura read aloud as she and Ten-ten exited the principal's office. The waiting room was currently empty and Shizune was nowhere to be seen. The two stood there looking at their schedules while Sakura read aloud, trying to ease her friend's anxiety about taking classes with upperclassmen. She looked at her brunette friend with a smile, though Ten-ten could see her slight disappointment_ " _Well that doesn't sound so bad! But I wonder what will happen with the literature thing Mr. Hatake assigned. I was kind of looking forward to that._" _Ten-ten remembered how Sakura enthusiastically talked about it during lunch, before the whole fight even ensued. She said that she was lucky to be able to work with one of her favorite pieces of literature with someone who knew about the author as well and was hopeful she could make friends with the other student.

"I sympathize with you, Sakura. But maybe you'll see each other in the hallways or something"

"That won't be necessary my dear Tennie, because he's going to be taking classes and working with us anyways" Ten-ten, confused, asked her who it was. When Sakura told her it was Sasuke, Ten-ten could only laugh at her.

"Good luck befriending that walking ice cube Sakura. I can already see you two wearing friendship bracelets and all that crap hahahaha"

"Oh shut up!" she replied, her cheeks reddening in embarrassment _"I'm sure he's nice and we can be friends"_

"Who's going to want to wear friendship bracelets with _her_? And for your information, that's _so _three years ago" Ten-ten stopped laughing and turned to where the new voice originated. Ino stood at the door, directly glaring at them. She quickly pushed past them and entered her aunt's office; not a moment later she emerged with what appeared to be her schedule and pushed past them once more to reach the exit. Before Ten-ten could even come up with some witty remark, she was already gone. The two just stood there, looking at the closed wooden door.

"Now that I think about it, that Sasuke guy might not be so bad." The brunette said, pointing her thumb at the closed door and rudely gesturing to the blonde. Sakura only giggled at her friend's funny face and together, they walked out the office.

* * *

"I can't believe I'm being separated from you guys! It's so unfair!" was the first thing Ino said when she exited the office and found her friends waiting for her outside. Two girls turned to look at her with identical sympathetic green eyes. Honestly, the only way Ino ever managed to tell her twin friends apart was because of their skin color. While Ami was a beautiful black haired, green eyed and fair skinned girl, her twin sister Ame was tanned skin, but equally as beautiful. "Don't worry Ino! We'll still have lunch together!" said Ami, glancing at her sister for help. Ame nodded in confirmation and added "Yeah! And we'll still go shopping every Saturday! That new perfume shop opens tomorrow, remember? It'll be great!"

"No it won't! I have to come here tomorrow for some stupid orientation! And I won't eat lunch with you because that's supposedly going to be "provided for" in whatever hellhole they're going to send me!" Ino whined again, frustrated tears rimming her icy blue eyes. The twins flinched after seeing her teary eyes, not knowing what to do. Ino rarely cried or even teard up, and when she did, she got over it quickly. Ami and Ame where at a loss of what to do, but before they said anything, Ino cleared her throat, took a deep breath and straightened up. "Sorry girls, that won't happen again" Just as she started to walk away, the wooden door leading to the principal's office opened and Sakura and Ten-ten came out. Ino felt her previously fading anger begin to show again at the sight of the girls who ruined her face. Ten-ten returned the glare Ino and her friends threw at them, while Sakura only stared. Ino and her friends started to head to the left corridor and Ten-ten to the right, unaware that Sakura wasn't following. Taking advantage that Ten-ten was far from earshot and so were Ino's friends, she called after her.

"Ino! Please wait" said blonde turned swiftly on her heel, hand placed in her hip and glare perfectly in place. "What do _you _want?" she spat in a venomous tone. Sakura swallowed, for once nervous about what she was about to say. She never though she would fight with anyone, but what she wanted to say was more than an apology; it was something that bothered her the moment she first saw her. "Listen" she swallowed again. "I wanted to apologize…for earlier. It wasn't right for us to fight, and I shouldn't have broken your nose. Sorry" "Tch. Damn right you-" "I'm not finished. I also wanted to say that, if for some odd reason, you find yourself alone and in need of someone to hear you out, you can count on me." After seeing Ino's shocked, and somehow angrier, icy eyes, Sakura turned and sprinted off after Ten-ten.

Ino watched her go, somehow at a loss for a moment. _"How dare that little freak even think I'd ever need something like that! And even worse that I'd actually ask her for something. Hpm!" _

Snapping out of her thoughts, she also turned on her heel and walked in the opposite direction of the green eyed girl.

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**END OF CHAPTER! I'M EXCITED BECAUSE VERY VERY SOON THINGS WILL START PICKING UP! PROMISE! ;P ONCE AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME TO READ AND REVIEW THIS STORY, I APPRECIATE IT! :D 3**

**-AIIRO**


	10. Chapter 9

**Hi everyone! I am so sorry I've taken soooo long to update! I recently started college and the workload is immense! But don't you worry, I'm not giving up on this story and I'll find the way to balance the work and my time to write. Once again I thank you all for staying with this story and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Review and tell me what you think :) I love to hear your opinions. Enjoy!**

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**Chapter 9**

**Tomorrow Can Be Good**

Sakura's footsteps echoed through the halls as she jogged to fall in step with Ten-ten, who appeared to be unaware of her previous absence. As she took her place beside the brunette, she caught on to her excited thoughts about "finally getting a job somewhere she wouldn't mind spending her time". Before the pink haired girl could say anything, they instinctively turned to look in front of them at the sound of approaching footfalls. A few feet away, Sasuke and Choji were walking their way, one absorbed in his music and the other happily munching on some contents they couldn't see clearly. Said boy stopped in mid chew when his brown eyes caught Sakura's. Ten-ten noticed the way a blush crept to his stuffed cheeks, how he swallowed, hard, and nervously glanced from Sasuke to his bag, to Sakura, to her, and to the floor. _"the hell?"_

Sakura flashes them a smile in greeting and they all stop for a moment, facing each other. After calming his nerves, Choji directs his dark eyes at Sakura, and looked down when she made eye contact. "Err…I just wanted to…um..." he started, not more than a little, soft voice. They instinctively leaned in, trying to hear his voice. When he glanced up, he saw Sakura's curious eyes and looked away once more. He swiftly bowed down, startling everyone with his sudden speed. "THANKS FOR SAVING ME FROM HER!" he shouted and quickly straightened up and kept walking briskly, leaving Sasuke behind.

Sakura turned to see his retreating form and smiled a little at this, feeling a little flattered for his actions, before Sasuke's smooth voice broke the silence. In a somewhat arrogant and somewhat annoyed voice, he scoffed and said "I wouldn't call it saving when you get your ass kicked by a tray" and before they could say anything to annoy him further, Sasuke walked around them and calmly headed in the same direction as Choji.

He soon caught up to the still blushing boy when he found him leaning against a locker, breathing heavily and beef jerky bag tightly clutched against his chest. For a moment, the sight reminded Sasuke of a deer caught in headlights; all wide eyed and jumpy, as he was startled from his thoughts when he leaned in the locker beside him. "Still not good talking to girls, I see" the black haired teen said, teasing smirk painted on his lips. Choji could only nod, and managed to speak between gasps "Yeah….I don't know how you manage to do it, Sasuke" said boy scoffed at this "It's quite easy, just don't talk to any of them altogether" he said as he straightened up and walked to a door Choji didn't even notice; the principal's office. Choji took a deep breath and calmed as best as he could before he followed Sasuke inside.

* * *

"Well! Let's get this started!" the sound of tile hit a wooden surface echoed through the empty coffee shop. Sakura's emerald eyes shined with excitement as she placed a coffee mug before Ten-ten and sat across from her in the booth at the back of the of the shop, beside the hall that lead to the restrooms and upstairs. Ten-ten lost count of how many times she shifted nervously waiting for Sakura to come. As soon as they exited the school, walked to the coffee shop and entered, the rosette directed her to the almost isolated booth and claimed to go make some coffee for them. It felt like forever, and the numerous clings and clangs and shuffles emanating from the kitchen only made her more anxious. This was it. She, at age 15, was finally going to get her first job interview. The sudden feeling of dread sank in when she assessed the situation and realized she had been with her –hopefully—future boss the whole day. "Stupid Ten-ten! How could you forget!? Stupid! Stupid" she muttered as she hit herself in the forehead. 'What if she had been testing her all day?' 'What if she didn't like her?' 'What if getting in trouble cost her the chance to work here?' Those questions kept swimming around her head until the sound of the mug shook her from her thoughts and increasing pessimism.

She held the mug between her tan hands and concentrated on looking at the steam rising from the pretty jade green cup. She didn't dare look up at Sakura, and when she noticed, she cleared her throat and leaned back in her chair. "You know, if this is supposed to be an interview, the least you could do is look at me, Tennie" she said with what Ten-ten noticed was a carefree, happy tone. Her chocolate brown eyes looked up and were greeted by an equally carefree smile. "I can tell you're nervous, but you shouldn't worry! I'm gonna ask simple questions, promise!"

The brunette visibly relaxed back into her chair, her shoulders lowering from their previously tense form. "So! For starters, since I'm curious, why do you want to work here?" she asked. "Well, to put it bluntly, I need the money. Plus, I love coffee, so I figured it wouldn't be so bad if I worked somewhere I enjoyed. I guess the days wouldn't be so slow." "I see" she said as she scribbled something in a little yellow pad Ten-ten had failed to notice before. "Have you worked in this kind of job before?" "No, but I'm good at making coffee and baking" "Good to know. –Scribbles- What hours would you be willing to work?" "Uh, every day after school and Saturdays I'm available. Though I wouldn't mind coming in on Sundays if I have to." The sound of the pen being dragged across paper seemed to drown the silence as Sakura didn't ask anything else for a while. Her green eyes looked up from her notes and flashed Ten-ten a smile. "Well, as I've told you before, I already like you! And you're hired!" she chuckled at Ten-ten's confused face "Wait, that's it?" "Yup. I only did this interview to please you. I had seen you the moment you came in, resume in hand and everything. Tehehe" Seeing her open her mouth, probably to protest or make some snarky remark, Sakura raised her hand, indicating she wasn't done talking.

"So I'm just going to give you a basic idea of how this is gonna go. Since we both have school, your schedule will be from 5pm to 8:30pm from Mondays to Thursdays, Fridays will be from 5pm to 7:30pm. Saturdays you'll be working from 8am to 9pm and Sundays are free unless I call you. Every Monday to Thursday, you'll serve as a barista, and Saturdays you'll help me bake I the early morning and shift between barista and pastries. Sound good?" Ten-ten could only gape at her and stutter a "Sounds great". Sakura smiled once again and said "Good. Now hurry and drink your coffee, I find it offensive you've only stared at it since I gave it to you. Also, since this is a small shop, we're short on staff. Don't be too surprised if I call you on a Sunday or ask you to stay a little longer; sometimes it gets busy around here at the most inconvenient time" "I don't mind lending a hand, really. Whenever I need to stay, I won't complain." "I'm glad to hear that, Tennie. Now-"she said as she glanced at the clock "it's already 6. I'll pack you some goods for you and your family and send you home, okay?" With that, she got up and walked back to the counter. Ten-ten watched Sakura swiftly move from side to side through the glass counter and pick up various croissants, bagels, donuts and muffins and stuff them into a straw basket she pulled from under the counter. She tied a pretty forest green bow on the top of the basket and brought it back to the table. "Here" she said "I hope your mom likes these kinds of things" "Thank you, she does" taking the basket, she saw the name of the coffee shop in bright yellow letters embroidered into the green ribbon.

"By the way…"

"Hmm?" Ten-ten directed her eyes to the yellow pad sitting in the table. "What did you write about me?" "About you? Nothing! I was doodling" she said as she showed her an awkward picture of her looking at the coffee mug. "I can't help but feel a little pissed that you drew me so ugly".

* * *

"Mom I'm home!" She called as she pushed open the old wooden door. She slid inside and wiped her hand on her jeans to get rid of the paint scabs that stuck to her palm. She made a mental note to buy some paint with her first paycheck. She silently walked to the living room to find her mother sprawled on the couch, still holding the television remote in her hand. "Must've fallen asleep waiting for me" she thought as she saw the television on and the table set for dinner. She walked to her and gently shook her awake.

Equally brown eyes met hers drowsily, as her mother raised to sit on the faded yellow couch. She pushed her messy locks from her eyes and looked at her daughter, giving her a tired smile and deciding not to comment on her daughter's bruised cheek. "Hola dear. Where were you?" "Sorry for being late mama, but I've got great news!" her eyes sparkled with curiosity hidden behind the weariness. "I got a job today, Ma. Now before you say anything" she said as her mother got ready to protest "I promise I won't strain myself, and I'll keep up my studies. This job's just to help us get by a little better." She took her mother's hand and kissed it lovingly, directing slightly pleading eyes to her mother "I swear." She could only sigh and give in; she could never deny her anything when she looked at her like that. "You are definitely your father's daughter Ten-ten. Alright, I won't say anything as long you keep your promise"

Ten-ten's grin splayed across her face as she wrapped her hands around her mother. She silenced the seemingly endless 'thank you' from her daughter by saying "now shut up and go reheat dinner. Because I bet a million dollars I don't have that whatever you're carrying in that basket isn't healthy." "Oh mother, you know me too well. But! This time, it's a gift from my new boss, who I actually made friends with! And..." And so Ten-ten left for the kitchen and reheated dinner, all the while telling her mother how she met Sakura and how her day went, sadly she had to explain the fight that bruised her face a little. She was thankful her mother was very understanding when it came to fights at school; for she had been picked on a lot by other kids when she was growing up. She closed her eyes and leaned back into the back of the yellow sofa and drifted off with the sound of her daughter's voice.

* * *

Sakura hummed a happy tune as she polished the milkshake glasses with a bright green dishtowel. It'd been a while since her newest employee left the shop, and judging by the darkness outside, she could guess it could be around 9pm now. She reached for the last of the glasses and started polishing it on the outside as she fell silent_. "I wonder what will happen tomorrow. I wonder what they'll have us do, and for how long. I wonder who our professor will be, and what the classes will be like. I wonder if we'll all get along if we get to work together. –sigh—I wonder so many things sometimes."_ She thought as she recalled the events that occurred during the day. She met Ten-ten, then Naruto, and then officially met Sasuke; and then she met Ino in the most unpleasant way. That meeting led them all into a fight and trouble with the principal; and somehow now they were all supposed to do community service as a way to repay the school for broken property and angering the principal.

On the bright side, she got a new employee to help her around with the shop, and hopefully she'll adapt quickly and things will go smoothly. Sakura smiled as she finished polishing the milkshake glass and placed them in the cupboard next to the rest. "Yeah, I shouldn't be too down about it. It's a chance to do something new, after all. I shouldn't be nervous." She walked to the stairs and turned off the lights after wiping the counter and tables clean. She gave one last look at the now dark coffee shop before heading upstairs to her apartment.

"Tomorrow can be good if I want it to be".

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**Well, this is the end of chapter 9. I'm sorry if it seemed short, but I promise the next chapter will make up for it. I still hope you enjoyed this chapter and review, I want to know: was it kind of slow? was it boring? did you like it? what are you expecting from this story? etc. etc. X) please let me know! And again, thank you for reading and take care! Until next time!**

**-Aiiro Hart **


	11. Chapter 10

**Alright! Finally managed to upload chapter 10! I am very sorry for the delay, but I've been having problems with my internet XD. I hope you enjoy this chapter and leave a review. Thank you for reading! **

**CHAPTER 10**

**This Will Be Hell **

She rubbed the drowsiness from her squinted eyes, trying to adjust to the brightness of the light reflecting from the white tiles of the hallway floor. Even now, at five in the morning, Konoha High School was brightly lit with fluorescent white lights. Sakura cursed her luck; she didn't think the school would have its lights on so early, much less on a Saturday. Had she known she wouldn't get a wink of sleep the previous night, she would have swallowed half of the sleeping pills kept in her bedside table. Blinking a few times to adjust to the bright hallway, Sakura absentmindedly started to walk around the hallways, her left hand barely touching a wall. _"Now that I think about it, this is the first time I've ever been able to walk down the hall so calmly. Usually there are too many people around, either in a hurry to get somewhere, or loitering."_

She walked for what seemed like hours, explored the parts of the school she would rarely visit, and even decided to go upstairs. The second floor of Konoha High School was reserved for art, dance, theater, music and cooking classes, along with any other electives or clubs the students might participate in. Sakura took art last semester, but she never explored the rest of the floor. She opened the door beside her art classroom and found a big, empty room, save for a wall-to-wall mirror to her right, and a neatly stacked pile of yoga mats in the wall facing the door. "This must be the dance room" she thought as she walked in. The room was cold and the perfectly waxed floorboards were slippery. She vaguely wondered how they managed to come and go unscathed from this room. She walked out and opened the next door, which revealed an even bigger room with three rows of six small kitchen stations, each equipped with a stove, a fridge, a cupboard and a sink. A tall bookshelf stood where a chalkboard usually goes, and on closer inspection she saw hundreds of recipe, health and nutrition books.

As she exited the cooking room and headed for the next door, the vague sound of music started to echo softly through the hall. Curious, Sakura followed the sound, and the closer she got, the clearer the sound would get. The faint sound of a guitar resounded through the whole floor; a soft, beautiful and somewhat sad melody. She found herself in front of the last room in the hall. Sakura slid the door ajar, enough to see inside. In the vast room with countless instruments neatly placed against the walls and a few chairs was a black haired boy, his back facing her. He sat on a table in the center of the room, softly strumming the guitar with pale fingers. She heard an intake of breath, and what followed left her stunned.

"_Everything's so blurry, and everyone so fake" _a beautiful, clear and smooth voice filled the room in perfect harmony with the music. Sakura leaned against the nearest wall in awe, completely absorbed by the soothing voice and taken aback by the amount of emotion being conveyed in the lyrics. _"And everybody's empty and everything is so messed up. Pre-occupied without you, I cannot live at all…" _For a moment, she forgot what was even happening and let herself enjoy the music, until an angry voice shot her down from cloud nine. She opened her eyes; surprised by the fact that she didn't remember closing them and that the musician had turned and was currently glaring daggers at her. She gulped, somewhat guilty for interrupting what she can assume is a composition –from the splayed notebook she now noticed beside him—and somewhat embarrassed for being caught eavesdropping.

"Err…sorry! I kind of just came in without thinking. You're really talented…hehe…" she fidgeted, avoiding his piercing eyes. "Well, since I'm already here, can I sit down and listen to you play?" she asked boldly. Receiving no answer, she looked up and saw as he turned back around and wrote something in his notebook while quietly mumbling. "May I, Sasuke?" "Hn. Yeah, whatever. But don't expect a concert, I'm composing. So be quiet." She held back a grin and scurried to the closest seat available; right in front of Sasuke. She leaned against the backrest and closed her eyes, listening to the beautiful voice once more

"_You could be my 'someone', you could be my scene…" _

It felt like days, but it was only a few hours when Sasuke stopped playing. Instead of lyrics, he opted for focusing in the guitar. He strummed evenly, melodically and precisely, both conscious and unaware of when to increase or slow the tempo. He opened his eyes and was met by Sakura's smiling face leaning against the wall, completely immersed in the music. _"Well, at least she pays attention" _The moment he stopped, she also opened her eyes and looked at him. "Wow Sasuke! who would have known you could play so well!" he stood up and walked to a guitar stand in the far corner of the room, placing it back where he found it when he first entered the room. Ignoring the girl, he took his notebook and rolled it into his back pocket while proceeding to exit the music room. Unaffected by his lack of acknowledgement, the pink haired girl smiled and closed her eyes once more, trying to recall the song she had just heard being composed. _"Hehe, I feel like I just witnessed something rather special"_

* * *

"Alright! You're finally ALL here!" the strong voice of Tsunade boomed through the nearly empty basketball court. Her amber eyes looked through all the teens, mentally counting each of them before stopping at the empty spaces in the front row of the bleaches, beside her niece. _"Hmm let's see. There's the brooding one, the loud one, the two quiet girls and Ino…who's missing?" _

"Wait…where's the fat one?" Ino rolled her eyes, annoyed "Probably devouring everything available in the cafeteria" Sakura scowled at this, annoyed at both blonde's words. She stood and answered the principal "He said he was going somewhere, didn't say where. Probably to the bathroom" When the door opened and they turned their heads, Ino snickered at Sakura's disappointed face while seeing Choji arrive with both arms full of sweets and chips. The snicker soon faded when he took his place beside her and started gorging on a bag of cookies. "Get away from me! If you ruin my dress with all your slime I'll swear I'll kill you."

Tsunade cleared her throat, finally deciding to start their little meeting. "Okay, since NOW everyone's here, I'm going to explain what's going to happen this lovely Saturday. See those people over there? They're your employers; they'll be taking care of explaining what you'll be doing this semester. Now knock yourselves out, I'm going home" she said, pointing to a group of middle aged people in blue t-shirts waiting by the door. Ignoring the two blonde teens' protests, she walked out of the courtyard as the group came in and stood in her place. The group consisted of two young looking adults, a man and a woman probably in their mid-thirties, an elder lady, much shorter than the two, and a woman who looked to be forty standing beside her. The only man in the group took a step forward and sent them all a friendly smile.

"Good morning guys, my name's Chris, this is Jenna" he said as he gestured to himself and the woman beside him "and these are Nellie and Sarah" he introduces the other two women to his right. "We're from the St. Petersburg Pediatric Medicine Association, also known as PPMA and we collect donations for treatments and disease research for children, mostly for those whose parents cannot pay for regular treatment in any hospital. We specialize in cancer patients and children with special needs or disabilities. We're here because your principal was kind enough to give us a call saying that she had some volunteers—" he slightly flinched when he saw half the teens' expression change from uninterested or listening to sour and scowling, but he decided to ignore it. "—And we're so excited about it. Now don't worry, you won't be going from door to door in strange places recollecting money. My friend Jenna here will explain what you'll be doing instead" Said woman steps forward with a broad smile, yet from what they could tell, this was the real boss, as she stood tough and commanding (yet friendly) and started to speak.

"Well, I'll be brief. Because I assume you're all well behaved, I don't think I'll have to tell you to get along and what-not. Simple things you should know is that you won't be working on St. Petersburg Hospital, you'll be working –along with us—in a facility nearby. You'll have transportation, and breakfast and lunch will be provided for you. We also have a volunteer's medical insurance in case any of you get hurt; let's hope it never comes to that."

"Um, excuse me ma'am, but what exactly will we be doing?" Naruto asked, voicing what the rest was wondering quietly. Their apprehension grew when a knowing smirk splayed across her features.

"We'll just let you find out for yourselves" she said as she walked away, telling them to head to the bus. The all shared a look and reluctantly followed her outside. Parked near the entrance was a big white school bus with the logo of St. Petersburg; the silhouette of a child looking up at a falling leaf. They all got in and remained silent the whole fifteen minute ride to their destination.

* * *

Sasuke was officially in hell. High pitched screams and what seemed to be a multitude greeted him as he entered a big yellow building through two glass doors. He winced at the noise and inwardly cursed his luck. He glanced to his side, where the other five unfortunate students were standing and saw their shocked and equally horrified expressions. He saw Naruto, Ten-ten and Ino loudly complain about their current situation, while Choji stood quietly, fairly entertained with a bag of chips. Sakura could only nod in agreement and look at their surroundings. Sasuke did the same, quietly observing the high ceilings, the recently polished floors, the bleachers and the adjacent door at the other side of the building. His eyes widened in sudden realization, and before he could regain his composure, Jenna spoke again.

"Yes, my friends! From now on, you six will be taking care of 50 children, from five to fourteen years old, in this basketball court from 7:00am to 5:00pm. As I said before, food will be provided, but you technically have to sit with them and make sure they don't steal someone else's food, so you won't really have a break. Good luck though!" said Jenna, walking away while giggling at their horror-stricken faces. Chris approached them soon after and explained to them basic rules of how they'd be working. Sasuke made a mental note of all he said, but he'd be damned before repeating anything to the annoying blonde pestering him to explain to him later because of his lack of listening skills.

They were to play, watch and accompany them to the bathroom. If there was a sick or injured one, they would be taken to the infirmary and would call their parents. They were not to be left alone or unsupervised at any moment. And they specially had to be vigilant of the surrounding bleachers. Chris warned them that countless times before kids have gotten hurt while playing down there and that was why only one set of bleachers was open for the kids to sit on. Also, they must be watchful of the doors and make sure the kids didn't wander out of the court. He watched, irritated, as kid's heads slowly turned to look at them and he felt his scowl growing when a group of girls started eying him unabashed.

"This will definitely be hell" was the last thing that crossed Sasuke's mind before he blacked out.

* * *

**Well, that's it for now! I know it's a little short, but hopefully next one will be even better! :D thanks for reading! Until next time!**

**-Aiiro Hart **


	12. Chapter 11: First Day

**Hey everyone! I'm back! I am sooooo sorry, I know I haven't updated this in FOREVER! I got so invested in one of my other stories, I sort of lost the muse for this one and didn't know how to keep it going. Though, I'll promise to do my best to finish it. Thank you for putting up with me and my writer's block. I hope you enjoy this chappie and tell me what you think!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 11**

**FIRST DAY **

**"….**ke!...Sas….ke! Sasuke?!" muffled voices started to draw him from unconsciousness. Faint whispers started getting louder and clearer as he identified his name being called. He slowly opened his eyes at what seemed like the sound of a closing door and squinted, shielding his eyes from the fluorescent lights that greeted him. With a groan and a few blinks to adjust to the blinding lights and was greeted with emerald eyes, bright by worry and relief. He sat up and realized he was in a lumpy and cold make-shift bed on a side of a nearly empty room. Across said room was a plastic table full of boxes and bins, with a tiny fridge nestled in the corner between the edge of the table and wall corner. Right beside the fridge, facing the entrance and making an L shaped chain of furniture was an old wooden desk, also piled with boxes. His eyes slowly trailed the rest of the room, ignoring a tall door in the corner—it's probably a broom closet—and turned his questioning stare towards Sakura.

"We're in the infirmary. Right after we came in one of the kids threw a really hard basketball at your head. You've been out for three hours." She said, nervous by his forming glare and trying to hold in her laughter. She heard him sigh and raise a hand to his head, and she involuntarily released a cackle when she saw the ever stoic boy's eyes widen when he felt the huge bump in the middle of his forehead. "hahahah I'm sorry Sasuke, you just look like a bloody unicorn!" she said between laughs. She clutched her stomach, aching from laughing so hard.

His voice brought her back from her amusement when he asked "What time is it, then?" With a few breathes to calm herself, Sakura answered him that it was five minutes past ten. She informed him that there were a total of fifty children in the gymnasium, and they were separated between pre-teens, children from six to ten, and children from four to five. While one group was playing in the court, the other two would be in the arts and crafts corner -according to Sakura, there wasn't another room available they could use, so they put a couple of tables on the far side of the court.

"Naruto and you have been assigned to the kids from six to ten, Ten-ten to the pre-teens and Ino and I have the small ones. Though Chris said this was just a way to distribute the work evenly between us, but we're technically taking care of all of them." While he was engrossed in taking in the information she had given him, and cursing this day over and over again in his head, he failed to notice the pink haired girl had taken a gauze pad and stuck it on his forehead.

"There! Now at least you won't look like some mythical creature with a bad attitude! The nurse said the swelling will probably go down in a couple of hours, so you can take it off by the time the groups switch from crafts to sports." With that, she stood from the small stool beside the stretcher and walked out the double doors to his right. Releasing an annoyed sigh, Sasuke plopped back down on the stretcher and placed his palm on his throbbing forehead, cursing once again when he felt the huge lump in the middle of his brow.

* * *

"God! Finally! Where the hell did you go?" Ino's angry glare greeted her when she crossed the double doors back to the court.

"Whoa, what happened to _you_?" she could barely hide the surprise in her voice as her eyes roamed the normally immaculate blond up and down. Her beautiful locks were in disarray, tangled and sticking out of its usual ponytail in odd angles, her clothes were wrinkled and dirty in some places, and her makeup was smeared over her pale face. Even though the girl looked as if she had just wrestled a grizzly bear, what caught Sakura's attention most was…

"Are you wearing glitter?"

"Well of course I'm wearing glitter, I've always wanted to be a shiny pixie who reeks of glue!" she said, turning red with anger. "now go and do your job while I try to fix this mess! Those little devils will pay for this…" Sakura didn't really hear the rest of Ino's complaining, choosing to walk towards the crafts table, where the smaller kids. From five to three, were currently sitting, looking at Chris while he handed them crafts materials. As she came closer, she looked to the side at the sound of a screaming child.

"Hmm, at least someone's having fun today" Naruto was currently playing basketball, or at least tried to, with some of the kids at the court, tripping more than running every time a kid lunged towards him. Sakura noticed there was this really small boy clinging to is leg while smiling impishly, while another one, whom she assumed was his brother, was climbing up the blonde's back. Naruto cast her a glance and gave her a big grin.

"Sakura! Come play some ball with us, will yah?"

"that's okay, Naruto. You look like you're doing a fine job!" she said, walking away from the tired boy.

"Aw come on! How am I gonna play with 15 sneaky kids alone! Where the hell is Sasuke?!"

"Calm down Naruto, Chris said there are two coaches coming soon to put the kids to play other stuff." Tenten walked towards him calmly, taking the boy on his back and putting him on the ground besides his little brother.

"Easy for you to say, you've got the big kids! They don't bite or pull your hair, and they definitely don't want piggy back rides" the blonde grumbled, rubbing his sore neck.

"I'd trade for this any day. It's way better than having to sit and listen to all that pre-teen drama and ridiculous celebrity gossip these girls talk about." She said, pointing at a big group of girls sitting in the bleachers, giggling and enthusiastically talking about something"

"Not to mention they keep saying they're planning to take pictures of Sasuke shirtless and make posters off of them."

"…now that's just nasty"

* * *

They all released a sigh of relief when they sat down at a corner of the court. Taking advantage that the kids were currently being entertained by guests invited by Chris, the six of them sat to rest their aching feet. Shortly after Sakura exited the infirmary, Sasuke followed and joined Naruto with their assigned group. They, along with two coaches who worked in the court, played with the energetic kids until things got out of control. The kids sitting in the crafts table wanted to play in the court, the pre-teens wanted to compete against each other, and before they knew it, the fifty kids were running all over the place. Instead of chasing after them, they just let them tire themselves out.

"Well, at least we've got 'em off our backs for a couple of minutes" moaned Naruto, falling on his back and splaying on the ground. "Man, for being sick kids, they've got too much energy."

"Yeah, I'll say" muttered Ino, still annoyed by her ruined clothes. "I mean, I still can' figure out how Sakura ended up with paint in her hair!"

"Huh? I've got paint in my hair?!" exclaimed Sakura, patting her hair until she felt a wet, sticky substance at the top of her head.

"Yeah, you look like a popsicle, Sakura." Ten-ten snickered. "I don't get it, we weren't even using paint in the crafts table!"

"Told you they were sneaky" said Naruto with a triumphant smirk. The three shared a short, exhausted laugh, while Sasuke merely smirked and Ino rolled her eyes and pursed her lips in disgust. After the laughter died down, Sakura started to look around. Confusion was sketched on her expression, and before long she voiced her inquiry.

"Say…where's Choji?" a sudden realization befell the group, finally noticing that they hadn't seen the boy since they got there.

"Huh, you're right. He wasn't even here when Chris assigned us our groups." Said Ten-ten.

Ino's lips curled in a snarl. "The fatso is probably off somewhere gorging on the kid's food. Disgusting pig."

"Ino! You don't have to be so mean! Surely he's probably off doing something else, since Jenna has been missing since morning too. Maybe she took him with her to do something else." Sakura tried defending Choji as best she could, but without avail. Everyone around her had either a look of irritation or exhaustion, and they all seemed unconvinced by her suggestion.

Before she could say more, Chris walked up to them, panic barely disguised behind her brown eyes.

"Guys! We have a problem! We need two of you to go somewhere right away!" he said. After Naruto bounced to his feet and asked what's wrong, Chris replied "I noticed that one of you was missing, but I assumed he was with Jenna, and she thought he was with me."

"Choji is missing?!" said Naruto.

"Oh, no. That's not the problem"

"How isn't this a problem?! He went missing right under our noses!"

"We found Choji. He fell fast asleep in a broom closet, after eating all of the snacks we had for the kids."

"Tch. I hope he gets constipated."

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**That's it for this chappie. I swear I'll do my best to start the next one real quick! Until next time! :D**

**Aiiro Hart**


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